However, in recent months this buzz has dampened as marketers balance the impact AI will have on marketing departments versus how it could help them cut costs around the way ads are made, sold and bought.
More than 75% of companies are looking to adopt AI tech in the next five years, according to a 2023 report from the World Economic Forum (WEF). Elsewhere, in the U.S. job portal Indeed said generative AI-related job postings jumped 20% in May, indicating growth opportunities for the employment market.
Braams—who is poised to leave Unilever at the end of the summer after 33 years with the business—said the industry initially viewed generative AI as an “efficiency play,” but now conversations had moved towards how to apply it to production and creativity.
“But equally, the jury is out: Will it give us more of the same creativity or allow us to tap into a new pool of creativity?” she questioned. “We can’t tell at this moment in time … but one thing is for certain, we need to use it in a responsible way.”
Some practical examples she believed AI could be applied included in marketing mood boards and concept pitches.
Speaking during one of Adweek’s sessions during Cannes, Bayer’s chief marketing, digital and information office Patricia Corsi concurred, saying she couldn’t envisage a world where robots would be creating campaigns alone without a human touch.
“The advertising industry is in the midst of a transformation, and this shouldn’t be seen as a negative force,” she said. “I’m interested in how it can be used in improving the lives of my team—I want repetitive tasks to be done using AI so they can focus on doing the stuff an AI can’t.”
Corsi observed it’s about freeing up time, not replacing people. When we embrace this with confidence as an industry, it’s going to be a positive thing.”
For Alessandro Manfredi, chief marketing officer at one of Unilever’s most valuable brands Dove, there was in interest in the potential of generative AI to “leverage and accelerate, not replace creativity.”
However, in line with Dove’s brand purpose around improving confidence and self esteem, and banishing stereotypes, he expressed concerns about how information fed into AI (including stock imagery) could perpetrate existing human biases.
“It’s a massive topic, and we’re reflecting on what we can do [as a brand],” he revealed.