AI is everywhere, but marketers are still learning as they go

Australian marketers have embraced AI faster than almost any other technology in recent memory, but most admit they're still working out how to use it effectively.

New research from the Australian Centre for AI in Marketing (ACAM) and Kantar found 83% of organisations remain in the early stages of embedding AI into their marketing operations, despite widespread adoption across the industry. None of the 126 CMOs and senior marketing leaders surveyed had reached the two highest levels of AI capability.

The findings suggest marketers have moved well beyond experimenting with tools such as ChatGPT and image generators, but many are yet to build the governance, workflows and long-term planning needed to turn AI into a genuine commercial advantage.

Half of respondents fell into ACAM's "Early Emerging" category, where AI use is growing but remains inconsistent across teams. Almost a third (31.7%) were classified as "Established Beginners", while just 16.7% reached "Mature Emerging", where governance, workflows and measurement are beginning to align.

Douglas Nicol (pictured), co-founder of ACAM and head of original thinking, said the industry's conversation around AI had shifted significantly over the past year.

"Twelve months ago, much of the conversation was about experimentation and early adoption. In 2026, the question has changed. It is no longer what AI tools marketing teams are using, it is whether they are building the maturity to turn AI activity into serious commercial impact," he said.

"The findings show real progress. Leadership confidence is growing, use cases are expanding and governance is becoming more visible, but the gap is also clear. Roadmaps remain weak, workflow redesign is immature and ROI proof is inconsistent. The momentum is real, but it's uneven."

While adoption continues to accelerate, marketers are becoming increasingly aware of the risks that come with it.

More than six in 10 CMOs (61%) identified AI-generated "slop" as their biggest operational concern, reflecting fears that an explosion of generic content could weaken brand distinctiveness. A further 32% said brand damage remained a key concern.

The benchmark also found planning remains a significant weak spot. Almost six in 10 organisations (58%) have no documented AI roadmap, while only 6% reported having a fully documented strategy for embedding AI across their marketing teams.

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The research also revealed a growing confidence divide inside organisations. While 69% of CMOs described the prevailing sentiment within their teams as "excited but cautious", more than half (56%) said a minority of employees remained cautious, scared or negative towards AI. The proportion of employees described as "scared" has increased by 22 percentage points since last year.

Natalie Lockwood, chief marketing officer at NAB, said the results reflected an industry making meaningful progress, but still some way from fully embedding AI into everyday marketing.

"The progression from 2025 to 2026 shows an industry moving forward at pace with AI," she said.

"The shift from 'Established Beginner' to 'Early Emerging' maturity is encouraging because AI is becoming part of how marketing teams think, plan and operate. But it is also a reality check. We are not yet at scale."

"The next challenge for CMOs is turning rising confidence and activity into capability, workflows, clearer roadmaps, governance and measurable commercial impact."

Corrina Brazel, general manager of marketing at Wesfarmers Health, said the opportunity now was less about adopting more AI tools and more about building the discipline to use them effectively.

"The industry has moved forward, and AI is becoming part of how marketing teams think, plan and operate. But the absence of advanced maturity shows the work still ahead," she said.

"The opportunity now is to build the operating discipline around AI: clearer roadmaps, redesigned workflows, better data, safer teams and stronger links to commercial value. That is how AI moves from activity to advantage."

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