Artificial intelligence (AI) has become ubiquitous in life. It seems every website and online app offers an AI enhancement that is supposed to produce faster and better results with less effort on the user’s part. These optional uses of AI seem helpful and relatively innocuous.

Of course, AI has far more sophisticated applications than just taking notes during your online meeting or summarizing an article you are too busy to read.  AI excels in analyzing complex data to uncover groundbreaking discoveries, like predicting protein structures or simulating climate change. AI can be used to drive automobiles, assist in medical diagnoses, and translate languages. And it can answer customer inquiries, optimize business operations, personalize customer experiences, and drive innovation through automation and predictive analytics. When given appropriate prompts, AI can perform creative tasks like writing songs and essays, and creating images and designs. 

How is Artificial Intelligence Used in advertising?

When equipped with facial recognition tools and machine learning, AI can also create amazingly accurate representations of real people, mimicking their voices, expressions, and gestures, to the point that these imitations are mistaken for the real thing. In the wrong hands, this “deep fake” technology can be damaging and dangerous. But there are also some potentially beneficial uses for it as well. Should brands be using AI-generated ads?

It’s understandable that many people have serious concerns about this type of use of artificial intelligence. Recent studies have tried to gauge sentiment on the public’s comfort level with the use of artificial intelligence in the creation of the advertising campaigns and marketing materials we see on various platforms. How do people feel about advertisers using AI to produce the images, designs, and words we see online, in TV commercials, and in print? 

How Do Consumers Feel About AI-Generated Advertising?

A recent YouGov study spanning 17 countries revealed that consumers generally feel more apprehensive than confident about brands employing AI to replace human elements in advertising. This includes the use of AI-generated actors in place of celebrities to endorse products, the creation of an AI social media influencer, and creating or modifying ad images digitally rather than through traditional photography and design.

The survey found that roughly half of global consumers expressed discomfort or strong disapproval with AI-generated ads. Specifically, only about a third felt positive about AI-generated brand ambassadors, and fewer than four in ten were comfortable with AI-created or altered product images.

Consumer Sentiment on AI-Generated Ads by Use Case

How comfortable, if at all, are you with brands using artificial intelligence (AI) in their advertising and communications in each of the following circumstances? (Showing net responses across 17 international markets)

Consumer opinions are divided on AI's role in crafting advertising content and selecting ad placements. Approximately 40% of respondents expressed both acceptance and concern about AI-generated ad copy and taglines, as well as determining where ads are displayed.

Which Country’s Consumers Are Most Uncomfortable with AI Advertising?

Consumers in France, Sweden, Britain, Spain, Canada, and Italy are most resistant to AI in advertising. Over half in these countries disapprove of AI in at least three advertising applications. Particularly, 60% or more in France, Sweden, and Britain oppose AI-generated brand ambassadors; France, Britain, and Italy reject AI-edited product images; and British consumers specifically dislike AI-created product photos.

A significant portion of consumers (between 50-58%) expressed discomfort with various AI applications in advertising. These include AI-generated virtual ambassadors in Spain, Canada, Denmark, Poland, Mexico, Australia, the U.S., and Italy; AI-created images in France, Spain, Canada, and Italy; AI-edited product images in Sweden, Canada, Denmark, Australia, and the U.S.; AI-written ad copy and product descriptions in France, Britain, Canada, and Spain; and AI-driven ad placement in France, Spain, and Canada.

Conversely, less than half of consumers in Germany, Hong Kong, the UAE, Indonesia, India, and Singapore have reservations about brands utilizing AI in all five advertising applications surveyed.

Percentage of Consumers by Country who are Uncomfortable with AI-generated Advertising

How comfortable, if at all, are you with brands using artificial intelligence (AI) in their advertising and communications in each of the following circumstances? (Showing combined responses for "not very comfortable" and "not comfortable at all" only)

AI Advertising and Disclosure Sentiments

Among consumers who accept AI in advertising, what percentage believe brands should openly disclose their use of AI?

A clear majority of consumers worldwide believe brands should openly disclose their use of AI in advertising across all five applications studied in the latest YouGov survey.

Opinions on Disclosure of AI Advertising by Use Case

Q1: How comfortable, if at all, are you with brands using artificial intelligence (AI) in their advertising and communications in each of the following circumstances?

Q2: Do you think a brand should or should not disclose the use of artificial intelligence (AI) in each of the following circumstances?

(Showing responses for Q2 among consumers who indicated "fairly comfortable" or "very comfortable" in Q1 only)

Approximately two-thirds of consumers who accept the use of AI-generated brand ambassadors (instead of real celebrities) and generated ad images (rather than product photos edited through traditional methods) believe that brands should still be transparent about employing this technology.

Similarly, roughly three-fifths of consumers who are open to AI-generated ad copy and AI-driven media placement believe brands should disclose their use of this technology.

Consumer Sentiment Across Markets on Disclosure of AI in Advertising

Consumers in Australia, Spain, Poland, India, Mexico, Indonesia, the UAE, and France are leading the call for transparency in AI advertising. At least three-fifths of residents in these countries believe brands should openly disclose any use of AI across all five advertising applications studied.

Percentage of People by Country Who Desire Disclose of AI in Advertising

Q1: How comfortable, if at all, are you with brands using artificial intelligence (AI) in their advertising and communications in each of the following circumstances?

Q2: Do you think a brand should or should not disclose the use of artificial intelligence (AI) in each of the following circumstances?

(Showing only responses for "Yes, brand should disclose they have used AI for this" in Q2, among consumers who indicated "fairly comfortable" or "very comfortable" in Q1)

The following data shows the percentage of consumers in each market who believe brands should disclose their use of AI in advertising, among those who generally approve of the specific AI applications.

Virtual brand ambassadors

• 70-76% of consumers

Australia, Spain, Poland, Britain, India, Indonesia, Mexico, Sweden and Hong Kong

• 61-67% of consumers

UAE, USA, Singapore, Canada, France, Italy and Denmark

• 59% of consumers

Germany

Generating product images

• 70-75% of consumers

Britain, Poland, Indonesia, Spain, India, Australia

• 61-68% of consumers

UAE, Mexico, Singapore, Hong Kong, France, Canada, Italy, USA, Sweden

• 56-59% of consumers

Denmark, Germany

Editing product images

• 70-71% of consumers

Spain, Britain, Indonesia

• 60-68% of consumers

Mexico, India, Australia, UAE, France, Poland, Canada, Italy, USA, Hong Kong

• 55-58% of consumers

Singapore, Denmark, Germany, Sweden

Copywriting ads / product descriptions

• 61-66% of consumers

Indonesia, Mexico, Spain, India, Australia, Poland, UAE, France, Canada

• 51-59% of consumers

Italy, Britain, Hong Kong, USA, Singapore, Germany, Sweden

• 47% of consumers

Denmark

Deciding ad media placements / targeting:

• 60-68% of consumers

India, Indonesia, Mexico, Spain, UAE, Hong Kong, Poland, France, Australia

• 52-59% of consumers

Britain, Singapore, Canada, Italy, USA

• 43-48% of consumers

Germany, Sweden, Denmark

Methodology: YouGov Surveys: Serviced provides quick survey results from nationally representative or targeted audiences in multiple markets. The data is based on surveys of adults aged 18+ years in 17 markets with sample sizes varying between 500 and 2,040 for each market. All surveys were conducted online during January 2024. Data from each market uses a nationally representative sample apart from Mexico and India, which use urban representative samples, and Indonesia and Hong Kong, which use online representative samples. Learn more about YouGov Surveys: Serviced.