A new report from Dentsu Creative says about three in four chief marketing officers (CMOs) worry that their teams are producing more content that delivers less impact, as artificial intelligence makes it faster to create.
Titled “Making It Real,” the report found that 76 per cent of CMOs hold that concern, while 74 per cent agree that more assets do not necessarily mean greater impact. It is based on a survey of 1,950 senior marketing decision-makers in 14 markets, including India, conducted in April 2026.
The worry comes even as demand for content keeps growing. According to the report, 81 per cent of CMOs expect to need far more content in future, and 71 per cent say they do not know how to balance the cost of extra assets against what those assets return.
AI has sped up the work but has not yet cut costs for most. The report found that 71 per cent of CMOs say AI is improving speed to market, while 70 per cent say they have not yet seen major cost savings.
The share of CMOs who expect generative AI to greatly help them produce assets quickly and cheaply has also dropped. In 2025, it was 89 per cent. In 2026, it is 82 per cent.
Many CMOs are reinvesting what they save. Some 82 per cent said AI-driven production efficiencies let them put more money into upfront creative craft, and 80 per cent said the savings help fund real-world experiences.
More content also needs more media support. The report cites research from WARC and CreativeX showing that creative output has risen by an average of 30 per cent, while media spend per asset has fallen by 15 per cent. More than 90 per cent of assets received less than $10,000 in media backing.
The Dentsu report also found that 77 per cent of CMOs believe agency structures that separate creative, media, data and production stop content from working as hard as it should.
Yasu Sasaki, Global Chief Creative Officer at Dentsu, said: “Today’s CMOs want to use technology to craft more human experiences.”
