This study investigates the determinants of artificial intelligence (AI) tool adoption among professional designers using the Unified Theory of Acceptance and Use of Technology 2 (UTAUT2) as the guiding theoretical framework. As AI increasingly reshapes creative industries, understanding the factors that drive designers’ intention to adopt and actual use of AI tools has become both theoretically and managerially relevant. Data were collected through a cross-sectional survey administered to 170 professional designers, including graphic, UI/UX, and product designers. The proposed research model was tested using Partial Least Squares Structural Equation Modeling (PLS-SEM). The results show that performance expectancy, effort expectancy, social influence, hedonic motivation, and price value have significant positive effects on designers’ behavioral intention to adopt AI tools. In contrast, facilitating conditions do not significantly influence behavioral intention but exert a strong positive effect on actual use behavior. Habit and behavioral intention also significantly predict use behavior, with habit emerging as the strongest determinant of sustained usage. The model explains a substantial proportion of variance in both behavioral intention and use behavior, confirming the strong predictive power of the UTAUT2 model in a creative professional context. This study contributes to the growing literature on AI adoption by extending UTAUT2 to the design industry and highlighting the joint role of utilitarian, hedonic, and habitual factors. Managerially, the findings provide actionable insights for AI tool developers and design organizations seeking to foster effective and sustained AI adoption.