• by Maarten Albarda , Featured Contributor, Yesterday

This week at the ANA’s Masters of Marketing in Orlando, AI was (of course) a dominant theme.

The conversation around AI is maturing quickly. While last year was about experimentation, this year was all about integration and proving ROI. Procter & Gamble detailed its "AI-everywhere" strategy, not just in media buying, but in accelerating creative testing and supply chain efficiency. A major theme was using AI to eliminate mundane tasks, freeing up marketing teams to focus on strategy and high-level execution.

At the same time, countless studies show that AI is not (yet) delivering real savings or real ROI. This week it was reported that an MIT study found AI deployments fail for 95% of companies, forcing rehiring or outsourcing. In some cases, AI appears less like transformative technology and more like a convenient cover for cutting headcount.

Also, recent studies showcase a wary and skeptical consumer. A study from the Heartland Institute this year found 72% of U.S. adults have significant concerns about AI, ranging from privacy concerns to algorithmic bias.

There is also a growing chorus of consumers voicing concern and opposition to what's been dubbed "AI slop": the proliferation of low-quality, inaccurate, and unvetted AI-generated content.

A recent joint study by the European Broadcasting Union and the BBC revealed that leading AI assistants misrepresent news content in nearly half of their responses.

At the same time, though, consumers appear ever more open to the very technology they claim to distrust. Deloitte's “2025 Connected Consumer” report shows dramatic growth of generative AI usage, with 53% of consumers now regularly experimenting with or using these tools, up from just 38% in 2024. More than half of these users engage with AI daily.

A Yotpo study from August found two-thirds of frequent shoppers use AI assistants to guide their purchasing decisions. And this week saw the launch of Atlas, ChatGPT’s own browser that brings all of this seamlessly together.

So how can we make sense of this apparent contradiction? It helps to realize that if you ask people questions about things they can’t imagine, they will choose the safe option of rejection. CDs as an alternative for vinyl were rejected by consumers when asked at the time, yet CDs took over very quickly. Also: consumers will say what they “feel” is the appropriate answer (“of course I don’t like AI-generated slop”), yet they also rack up millions of views for completely nonsensical TikTok content of AI-generated babies replacing actors in famous movie scenes.

To give consumers some credit: They are, in principle, practical. If an AI tool can help them write an email faster, find the perfect gift in seconds, or discover a new favorite song, they will use it. The benefits of AI outweigh concerns about data privacy or algorithmic fairness.

And many consumers are probably using AI without even realizing it. The recommendation engines on their favorite streaming services and the summarized search findings in Google are of course powered by AI. They have utility and therefore are accepted.

For marketers and advertisers, this contradictory landscape requires real thought. The consumer relationship with AI is not a simple love-or-hate affair; it is a constant battle between convenience and concern. And while in the end convenience usually wins, brands will need to make sure consumer concerns are recognized and addressed.