Survey: Half of consumers globally uncomfortable with virtual brand ambassadors

Around half (47-51%) of the consumers across the globe are uncomfortable with brands using AI to create brand ambassadors, a survey finds.  

According to the latest YouGov survey across 17 markets globally, only around a third are “fairly comfortable” or “very comfortable” with an AI-created brand ambassador (34%), and two in five with AI-generated or edited product images in advertising (both 39%). 

Among markets polled, consumers in France, Sweden, Britain, Spain, Canada and Italy are most likely to be uncomfortable with the use of AI in advertising, with more than half expressing discomfort with the use of AI in three or more potential use cases. 



In particular, 60% or more of consumers in these markets are uncomfortable with brands using AI to create virtual ambassadors (France, Sweden, Britain), edit product images (France, Britain, Italy) and generate images in place of product photography (Britain), according to the survey.  

Meanwhile, discomfort with AI use ranging from 50-58% of consumers was found for AI-created virtual brand ambassadors in Spain, Canada, Denmark, Poland, Mexico, Australia, USA and Italy, AI-generated images in France, Spain, Canada and Italy, AI-edited product images in Sweden, Canada, Denmark, Australia and USA, AI-copywritten ads or product descriptions in France, Britain, Canada and Spain, as well as AI-powered ad media placements in France, Spain and Canada. 

In contrast, fewer than half of consumers in Germany, Hong Kong, UAE, Indonesia, India and Singapore express discomfort with brands leveraging AI across all five use cases polled. 

Consumers, however, are split over the use of AI to produce advertising descriptions and taglines and to decide media placements of ads, with those expressing discomfort and those finding such AI applications acceptable both making up around two in five (41-43%) of all consumers polled. 

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