Artificial intelligence has stormed into the advertising world with unexpected intensity. For marketing directors at top brands, AI has become a source of great hope but equally significant concern. As The Drum aptly notes, AI generates as much excitement among marketers as it does anxiety.
Despite its enormous potential, leading advertisers increasingly and openly voice their doubts. Here are five key areas currently dominating their attention.
- Legal and regulatory challenges
AI development raises serious questions about law and accountability. Advertisers primarily fear the risk of intellectual property infringement. Generative AI systems might create content containing copyright-protected elements, exposing brands to potential legal claims. Meanwhile, existing regulations, such as those in the U.S., do not grant full copyright to AI-generated works. In practice, this means brands might struggle to protect rights related to their own campaigns.
Equally pressing is the issue of data privacy. With the automation of media planning and ad personalization, companies must ensure compliance with regulations such as GDPR or the upcoming AI Act. Rapidly changing rules and escalating penalties exacerbate the challenge. As emphasized by the WFA, legal and regulatory concerns have become a significant barrier to the adoption of AI in marketing.
- Lack of transparency from agencies
Agencies’ use of AI in campaign creation and media planning has become standard. Yet, not all brands know to what extent artificial intelligence has been utilized. The concerns are straightforward: is the client paying for human creativity or automatically generated content?
During a WFA meeting, experts stressed that advertisers should closely examine agency fee structures and demand clear disclosures on AI usage. Lack of transparency risks financial losses and potential legal and reputational harm, especially if AI-generated content violates third-party rights or ethical standards. Increasingly, brands expect partners to openly disclose when and how AI is employed. Transparency is no longer merely beneficial—it has become essential for trust-building.
- Ethics, biases, and sustainability
Even well-intentioned AI can inadvertently replicate biases ingrained in its training data. For brands committed to diversity and inclusion, this is an unacceptable risk. According to WFA research, as many as 55% of major advertisers worry AI could harm their DEI (Diversity, Equity, Inclusion) strategies.
Additionally, the environmental impact of AI is drawing increased scrutiny. Training large models demands substantial energy resources, contradicting many companies’ ESG commitments. The question of whether enthusiasm for AI clashes with environmental responsibility is being asked with growing frequency. Marketers acknowledge the necessity of establishing clear principles around AI usage—ensuring technology supports rather than undermines brand values.
- Organizational tensions and competency gaps
Implementing AI is not solely a technological issue—it also raises the question of governance. Should AI management fall to marketing, IT, or data analytics departments? The absence of clear answers frequently leads to internal tension and confusion. To address these challenges, some organizations introduce roles like Chief AI Officer or establish interdisciplinary teams. However, competency gaps—both technical and strategic—remain the biggest obstacles.
As highlighted by WFA, investing in employee training has become crucial. Companies must cultivate internal expertise rather than relying exclusively on external vendors. Without clear roles and responsibilities, AI implementation could lead to chaos rather than competitive advantage.
- AI primarily enhances internal processes
While AI is often praised for its spectacular potential in campaign creativity, brands today experience the greatest benefits internally. AI enhances analytics, customer segmentation, and forecasting capabilities.
According to a WFA report, AI now significantly boosts operational efficiency. However, these improvements often remain invisible to consumers, raising questions about demonstrating ROI when the most significant benefits occur behind the scenes.
Experts reassure that robust foundations built today will enable brands to leverage AI more effectively in future communications. Raja Rajamannar from Mastercard emphasizes that marketing is entering a new era, where pragmatism must align with principles. Striking the right balance—effectiveness without compromising values—will be essential.