Category: Research and data
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Claude as a Timeclock: What 100,000 Chats Say About Productivity
Anthropic ran a privacy-preserving analysis of 100,000 real Claude.ai conversations to estimate how long people’s tasks would take with vs. without AI help. Claude’s own scoring says the typical task would take about 90 minutes unassisted, and that using Claude cuts completion time by roughly 80% on average. They also mapped tasks to O*NET occupations…
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Fembots, Football & Funny: What Viewers Want From Super Bowl Ads
Turns out Super Bowl viewers mostly want to laugh—with or without the help of an algorithm. A recent Harris Poll for Ad Age found that 71% of consumers are craving funny ads during this year’s Big Game, and humor is also what sticks, with 46% saying they’re most likely to remember a funny spot. Agencies…
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YouTube Tops Reddit in AI’s New Citation Economy
Turns out LLMs don’t care if you have followers—they just want your transcripts. YouTube has leapfrogged Reddit to become the leading social source cited in AI-generated search results, according to new data from Bluefish, Emberos, Goodie AI, and Profound. That’s a sharp contrast from just months ago, when Reddit was still dominating AI responses thanks…
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Brands Trust AI More Than Gen Z Does—And It’s Showing
AI is now a staple in the ad toolkit, but don’t assume younger consumers are thrilled about it. According to new data from IAB and Sonata Insights, 82% of ad execs believe Gen Z and Millennials feel upbeat about AI-generated ads. In reality? Only 45% do—down from 2024—and negative sentiment among Gen Z has nearly…
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Study Reveals AI-Only Ads Boost Engagement Over Hybrid Approaches
This one is going to be maybe a little controversial, or at least news that humans don’t want to hear. A joint study from NYU and Emory University has delivered a sharp rebuke to the idea that humans and AI make better creatives together. After testing GenAI ads across more than 100,000 impressions, the researchers…
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Smart Shelves and Smarter Spend: Retail’s AI Budget Boom
Retailers and CPG companies are no longer dabbling in AI—they’re bankrolling it. NVIDIA’s latest survey shows that 90% of industry leaders plan to hike their AI budgets in 2026, focusing heavily on open-source tools and agentic AI. Why? Because AI isn’t just handling analytics; it’s pulling serious weight in supply chain forecasting, customer personalization, and…
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Slop and Scroll: AI Filler Takes Over YouTube’s First Impressions
A new study from video-editing company Kapwing shows just how aggressively low-effort AI content—dubbed “AI slop”—is worming its way into YouTube’s recommendation engine. More than one in five videos served to new users falls into this category, which includes content created purely to rake in views with low production values and zero narrative. Among 15,000…
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AI Adoption Gap Between Executives and Employees
A new BambooHR survey of 1,500+ U.S. salaried employees shows the AI divide between executives and employees is more Grand Canyon than puddle. While 72% of VP-level execs use AI tools daily, only 18% of individual contributors (ICs) do the same. The gap isn’t just in adoption—it’s in values and perceptions. Execs see AI-generated work…
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AI in Advertising: Consumer Reactions and Emotional Engagement
System1’s deep dive into generative AI advertising reveals something pundits love to debate but consumers don’t appear to care about: whether or not AI made the ad. In testing 18 AI-generated spots across three countries and 2,700 viewers, ads created with machine help actually outperformed traditional ones on emotional engagement, scoring 3.4 Stars against a…
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CMOs Find Their AI Groove—And Use It Weekly
According to a new report from Dentsu Creative, over 80% of senior marketing leaders are now using AI tools on a weekly basis to bang out copy, surface trends, test ideas, and even summarize insights they’d rather not read themselves. Based on responses from 1,950 global CMOs and senior marketers, the findings signal that AI…
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How AI is Shaping Ecommerce for the Holidays
Holiday e-commerce in the U.S. is expected to climb 5.3% this year, and for the first time, retailers are writing AI into their seasonal strategies. Instead of relying solely on Google, consumers are increasingly using ChatGPT and similar platforms to research and compare products. ChatGPT’s own shopping integration, backed by Walmart, Shopify, and Etsy, signals…
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ChatGPT Sends Shoppers, But They’re Leaving Their Carts Behind
A new study from German researchers is poking a few holes in the hype around AI-powered shopping. Analyzing more than 50k ChatGPT referrals vs. 164 million traditional transactions across nearly 1,000 e-commerce sites, they found that while ChatGPT may be driving fresh traffic, it’s not delivering at checkout. Conversion rates from ChatGPT referrals lagged behind…
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Why Your SEO Strategy Needs to Embrace AI and GEO
WPP’s chief AI officer Daniel Hulme makes a compelling case: SEO may not be dead, but it’s no longer the sun around which brand visibility orbits. As chatbots and personal AIs take charge of shopping behaviors, traditional keyword-centric strategies are losing relevance. Instead, we’re stepping into the era of Generative Engine Optimization (GEO), where a…
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Assessing GPT-5’s Performance: AI vs Human Capabilities
OpenAI has put its latest models through a new workplace stress test called GDPval, designed to see how they stack up against real human professionals across 44 job types in nine heavyweight industries like finance, healthcare, and manufacturing. In short: GPT-5-high, the premium version of the upcoming model, tied or beat human-generated work 40.6% of…
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AI Gets a Side-Eye: Most Americans Want Tools, Not Takeover
A new Pew survey of over 5,000 U.S. adults reveals that Americans are cautiously circling the AI buffet—happy to try the data salad, but skipping the emotional entrees. Nearly three-quarters are open to AI helping with daily tasks, but two-thirds want more say in how it shows up in their lives. And when it comes…
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The Impact of AI on Consumer Search Behavior
Marketers would do well to pay close attention to shifting consumer search behavior: 87% of U.S. adults now read AI-generated summaries when they search online, and more than 8 in 10 are using AI as part of their shopping decisions. These stats come from the latest Centerfield Gen-AI Consumer Survey, which paints a pretty clear…
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AI Fatigue: Insights from Consumer Preferences in Search
Gartner’s latest consumer data puts a damper on generative AI’s hype in search. According to a survey of 377 consumers, 61% said they’d prefer the ability to switch off AI-generated summaries in their search results. Skepticism runs deep—53% don’t trust AI’s ability to provide accurate or unbiased information, and 41% say they find AI-generated overviews…
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Retailers Embrace AI Despite Trust Issues
Retailers are increasingly adopting AI despite concerns about accuracy, cost, and customer trust, with 60% of industry leaders expressing unease over its reliability. A recent survey indicates over half anticipate AI will dominate customer interactions within five years. Challenges include data privacy, inconsistent quality, and internal resistance. Notably, Under Armour employs AI for operational efficiencies…
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Consumers Warm up to AI Shopping Agents
Consumers are increasingly embracing AI as a shopping aid, with 38% of bridge millennials and 32% overall using AI tools for retail tasks. Baby boomers are also participating, with 28% utilizing AI. However, 85% express concerns about privacy. Leading platforms like Perplexity, OpenAI, and Google are enhancing AI shopping experiences with advanced functionalities. Consumer hesitation…
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How Gen AI is Transforming Snapchat Ads: Key Findings
Snapchat’s exploration of Gen AI has proven beneficial, enhancing ad performance with engaging AR Lenses. A study involving over 14,800 consumers revealed that AI-powered video ads significantly improved user engagement compared to traditional formats, leading to higher buying intent and brand visibility. Moreover, Snapchat is democratizing Lens creation through generative tools for broader access. However,…
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Generative AI Adoption vs Consumer Trust: The Disconnect
Generative AI is influencing creative processes and campaign planning, with its adoption in companies increasing from 20% in 2017 to 70% in 2022. Despite marketers successfully utilizing AI for creating campaigns, especially video ads, public skepticism remains high, as many consumers struggle to discern authenticity in AI-produced content. Big Tech firms are projected to invest…
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Unlocking ROI with AR for B2B Success
B2B buyers prioritize value and efficiency, and recent data indicates that mobile AR has significantly grown, reaching $12.7 billion in the U.S. This technology enhances decision-making and buyer engagement, particularly in sectors like manufacturing and healthcare. Successful implementations by companies such as Airbus and Boeing demonstrate significant quality improvements through AR tools. However, the effectiveness…
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Cat Fights, Space Babies, and Algorithm Mush: AI “Slop” Is Eating YouTube
In July, nearly 10% of the fastest-growing YouTube channels featured solely AI-generated content, showcasing bizarre storylines and attracting millions of subscribers. Channels like Super Cat League exemplify this rise, amassing significant followings through surreal yet captivating videos. Experts criticize this trend as “AI slop,” driven mainly by ad revenue. In response, YouTube is attempting to…
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AI accounts for a third of brand search traffic
AI engines like ChatGPT now drive a significant portion of search traffic, prompting brands to adapt their SEO strategies to focus on generative and answer engine optimization instead of traditional methods. Marketers must refine content based on user intent as AI systems become new gatekeepers of brand discovery. However, risks like transparency gaps exist, emphasizing…
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Google Says AI Isn’t Eating the Internet
Google asserts that its AI-driven search results do not cause significant drops in website traffic, despite concerns in the publishing industry. Search chief Liz Reid claims traffic remains steady overall, but unevenly distributed. While AI Overviews may reduce clicks, intentional user engagement could be increasing. The media landscape faces pressure from algorithm changes and competing…
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Measuring the environmental impact of AI
French AI startup Mistral revealed the environmental impact of its “Large 2” language model, indicating that 86% of its carbon emissions come from model training and prompts. Over 18 months, emissions reached 20,400 tons of CO2. Mistral highlights the need for businesses to consider environmental costs alongside financial returns in AI use.
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Google’s AI Answers Are Leaving Websites in the Dust
A Pew Research Center study reveals a significant decline in web traffic due to Google’s AI Overviews, which reduce click-through rates from 15% to 8%. With AI summaries, only 1% of users click through to sources, favoring platforms like Wikipedia. Google disputes the findings, claiming AI promotes user curiosity.
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IAB: Small Biz Leans into GenAI Video
According to new research from the Interactive Advertising Bureau, nearly 90% of digital video buyers say they’re already using, or planning to use, GenAI for tasks like editing, styling, and localized targeting. The result? Roughly one-third of all digital video ads this year are expected to be GenAI-created or GenAI-enhanced, up from 22% in 2024—a…
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Suspected AI writing reduces trust
A recent study by Raptive, the digital media firm behind ad sales for publishers like Stereogum, shows that readers don’t just side-eye AI-written content—they flat-out trust it less. In a survey of 3,000 U.S. adults, Raptive found that when people suspected an article was generated by AI, their trust in the piece dropped by half,…
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Agencies continue to pace ahead of clients on AI adoption
According to research from Google and BCG, agencies are ahead of advertisers by an average of 35% in key AI use cases like measurement, creative development, and data analysis. Despite this, less than half of advertisers say their agencies have educated them on AI solutions. There appears to be an opportunity for agencies to take…
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Roblox’s Green Thumb Moment: “Grow a Garden” Propels Platform Into Prime Time
Roblox just pulled off a feat that deserves a spot in gaming’s record books. “Grow a Garden,” a farming sim, clocked an eye-watering 21.6 million concurrent players—putting it ahead of Fortnite’s legendary 2020 Galactus event. Unlike the competition, this Roblox game didn’t need a one-night-only gimmick to rake in numbers; it’s just users logging in…
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Is Trust in Influencers Waning?
Turns out, consumers trust traditional ads more than influencer endorsements. A new survey of 3,700 U.S. adults by the National Advertising Division (NAD) found that while 58% have made purchases based on influencer content, more than a quarter said they don’t trust influencer marketing at all—compared to just 11% who distrust advertising. The main issue?…
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Agentic AI Is the Shiny Object—And 40% of Projects May End Up on the Shelf
Gartner’s latest forecast throws cold water on the gold rush toward agentic AI, predicting that more than 40% of related projects will get the axe by 2027. Blame a combination of fuzzy business value, ballooning costs, and flimsy risk mitigation. A January 2025 Gartner poll found only 19% of organizations were going big on this…
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📈 AI Search Ads Are Gaining Ground
AI-driven search advertising may still be in its early innings, but it’s already warming up for a big game. According to Emarketer, ad spend in this category is projected to soar from just over $1 billion in 2025 to a hefty $26 billion by 2029. That’s a jump from accounting for 0.7% of total search…
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Companies Hit Undo on AI-Only Customer Service
It seems as though replacing all your customer service reps with chatbots isn’t the silver bullet some execs thought it would be. According to a Gartner survey of 163 customer service leaders, half of the companies that planned to go all-in on AI for support are now walking that back. The big idea? Save costs…
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👀 Eye See What You Did There: Dentsu Bakes Eye-Tracking Into Retail Media Planning
Dentsu is betting that where shoppers look matters just as much as what they buy. In what it’s calling a “world’s first,” the agency network has integrated real-world eye-tracking data into its global media planning system. Partnering with Co-op Media Network and Lumen Research, the system pulls in attention data from surveys done at UK…