South Dakota Ranked Low for Creative AI Search Interest
New research shows the state trails national averages in monthly searches for generative AI tools.
Updated on Oct. 12, 2026 in Artificial Intelligence
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South Dakota ranked 49th out of 50 states for creative AI search volume, according to a recent analysis by Superside. The state averages 2,216 searches per 100,000 residents, remaining well below the national average of 3,141.
Why it matters
This ranking highlights regional disparities in the early adoption and public exploration of generative AI technologies. Monitoring these trends provides insight into which areas are prioritizing AI-driven creative workflows compared to the national baseline.
South Dakota residents perform 20,720 creative AI searches monthly, including 9,470 for image generation and 3,770 for video creation. This rate is 29% lower than the national average, placing the state behind neighboring North Dakota and Montana.
The players
Superside
A company specializing in AI-enabled creative production and design services that tracks global creative AI trends.
The details
Superside calculated these figures by aggregating Google search activity across nine categories of artificial intelligence. Researchers normalized the data using 2025 population estimates to ensure accurate comparisons between states. This methodology accounts for varied population sizes, allowing for an apples-to-apples view of search density across the United States.
Timeline
2025: Population estimates were used to adjust search data for the study.
October 2026: Superside published the research regarding state-level creative AI search activity.
The Tech Race
This research positions South Dakota against leaders like New York, which saw the highest search rates in the country at 3,777 per 100,000 residents. The gap between these states highlights a clear divergence in the regional adoption and interest levels for generative AI creative tools.
The low search volume suggests that creative AI tools may not yet be integrated into common local workflows or hobbies at the same frequency as in top-ranked states. Residents and businesses looking to stay competitive in digital production may find significant room for early adoption in these sectors.
The takeaway
The data confirms that creative AI exploration is unevenly distributed across the United States. Readers interested in the trajectory of this technology should watch for future reports that track whether this search gap correlates with actual enterprise software adoption or local economic output.
Further reading
For more information on the evolving landscape of regional interest in new tools, see Artificial Intelligence.
Source note: This article includes information reported by Kotatv.
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