One of enterprise AR‘s talking points is that it’s broadly applicable across a range of vertical industries. We’re talking everything from energy to education. That’s one reason why AR’s potential market size is so big.

But how does that break down and what industries are leading AR adoption? According to a PWC Digital IQ survey (n=2216) auto ranks the highest for current adoption (17 percent) followed by Technology, media & telecom (15 percent) and Healthcare(11 percent).

These results aren’t surprising, given that auto companies have a lot to gain from AR. Its value chain has many points where AR adds value — everything from design to manufacturing to retail. The latter involves customers that can visualize car options using AR, like BMW’s iVisualizer app.

The only surprising part about these findings is the lower adoption of some of the industries we often see cited as examples of AR adoption. Power & utilities, energy & mining and industrial products are all manufacturing-heavy or involving field work where remote AR assistance is fitting.

Drilling deeper, what are the actual job roles where AR adoption is happening? According to a PTC survey of its Thingworx customers, the top AR use case is in service (reference and remote assistance), followed by manufacturing (assembly instructions) and sales & marketing.

These findings are likewise logical without too many surprises, but it validates a lot of the points we’ve been making about where AR will add the most value in the enterprise. We expect training will move up the list though, currently one of the lowest areas of adoption according to the survey.

ARtillry is in the process of producing its January Intelligence Briefing, which will focus on enterprise AR. Who’s using it? Where is it working? What are the adoption/implementation challenges? And what are the biggest takeaways for XR players vetting opportunities? Stay tuned.

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Disclosure: ARtillry has no financial stake in the companies mentioned in this post, nor received payment for its production. Disclosure and ethics policy can be seen here.