The advertising industry is only just beginning to glimpse the impact of artificial intelligence (AI), according to Kate Scott-Dawkins, global director, business intelligence of GroupM. 

The Next 10: Artificial Intelligence, a report written by Scott-Hawkins and other contributors across GroupM, forecasts the size of AI in advertising and reports on the technologies and behaviours that will shape advertising over the next decade.

GroupM estimates AI will reach more than $US370 billion this year, or roughly 45%of all advertising, and is likely to inform the vast majority of media by 2032, reaching $US1.3 trillion, or more than 90% of total ad revenue.

Scott-Dawkins" “While an exercise of this kind is speculative by nature, this report is rooted in the insights of the GroupM analysts, strategists and technologists who necessarily incorporate a long-term view when shaping the next era of media where advertising works better for people. 

“It produces estimates around the size of AI-enabled ad revenue globally through the lens of how media channels are likely to evolve over the next decade due to the growth in application of AI, along with emerging technologies like edge computing and augmented reality.

“For the purposes of this paper, we define AI-enabled advertising as any artificial intelligence used in the process of advertising, from insight generation to activation and optimisation.

“We include technology and algorithms that sit under the umbrella of AI, such as machine learning, neural networks, computer vision, natural language processing (NLP), and intelligent process automation.”

Technology and behaviours shaping the next decade of advertising::

Declining reach of linear TV and less tolerance of irrelevant, interruptive ad pods.
Growth of audio-first devices with digital assistants (e.g. ear buds and smart home speakers) means that voice search will overtake text-based search.
Data will most often be managed on-device and will be increasingly obfuscated or anonymised by AI and privacy services.
Scott-Dawkins: “One of the most important implications of the growing use of AI is that marketers looking to capitalise on its capacity to drive personalisation will increasingly tie products, consumer experiences, and advertising closer together.

"While it isn’t a given that AI will be used in every campaign or every business, the following are a few examples of how AI could flow from product to customer experience to advertising over the next decade”:

Sectors:

AUTOMOTIVE: Companies will likely make use of generative AI and digital twin technology to power their product, customer, and advertising experiences. By 2032, we could imagine that all the world’s roads and highways will be digitally mapped, and many will be equipped with sensors measuring wind,temperature, or even the angle of the sun.

Both the autos and the routes they drive will have digital twins - virtual models used to run simulations, analyse performance, and suggest future improvements. These virtual models could be available in video games to generate awareness and enable virtual test drives.

Video ad campaigns could feature the car or truck in a personalised shade of green in that viewer’s own city or town without having to film there. Even custom specifications for the car, loan financing, and test drive scheduling could be done using interactive AI chatbots employing real-time market dynamics and road conditions, as well as inventory numbers.

Once the vehicle is purchased, any consented driving data could feed personalised maintenance and performance recommendations.

APPAREL: Brands could see massive opportunity as well as disruption from the use of computer vision, generative AI, and machine-learning algorithms. Brand building will therefore be an important weapon against a vast grey market of knockoffs, as well as marketplaces of user-generated designs (UGD) available to download and 3D print or fabricate locally.

In this future AI-enabled environment, large brands could benefit from partnerships with content producers in which products are dynamically inserted into TV, films, and video games, with an option for the consumer to “shop the look.”

A dominant UGD marketplace (the YouTube of products), could host billions of designs for shoes and jewellery, or anything that could be 3D-printed from a variety of materials, including metal, wood, and plastic, using AI and no-code development.

adnews: This would democratise design and empower those without any knowledge of computer-aided design (CAD) to design and sell products. For example, a consumer could buy a digital sneaker file from an up-and-coming designer, send it to their local retailer-turned-commercial-3D-printer, and have the shoes delivered via drone the same day.

ENTERTAINMENT: In this imagined future, movie and gaming studios will use generative AI to personalise storytelling.

Awareness campaigns for new IP that run across streaming platforms and digital audio can feature different characters or plot lines depending on the target audience with minimal added time and effort.

AI-generated interactive avatars of characters can be deployed into shows, social platforms, metaverse environments, or even real-world locations if a person is wearing AR glasses with a HUD.

Audiences and players, instead of purchasing a single download, could opt to play the movie or game multiple times, choosing new adventures, endings, or even main characters, all made possible by generative AI.