The industry must learn from the past and reframe generative AI as consumer tech, not business tech   

The dawn of generative AI is often compared with the dawn of digital. But Marcos Angelides - who has strategically led brands through both - believes the advertising industry risks misunderstanding the moment if it treats AI as simply another technological wave. 

Angelides recognises the irony: AI is radically different from previous technologies, yet the industry is already repeating many of the same mistakes made during the rise of digital. 

Back then, businesses often fell into two camps. There were late adopters, who now regret not embracing change sooner. And there were all-in early adopters, who bet everything on a single channel - often to their detriment. For Angelides, the answer lies in balance. Clever businesses sat in the middle: they adopted new technologies early on and integrated them into existing strategies.

“They didn’t ignore them, but they also didn’t bet the entire house on them.” 

In the digital era, many organisations spent years building the “perfect” product, only to realise upon completion that the digital world had moved on. Eventually, agile methodology emerged, combining long-term strategy with short-term builds so businesses could iterate and see real outputs. Angelides believes AI adoption is following the same trajectory. 

“There are businesses - not just startups - whose entire proposition is based on one feature. Then ChatGPT or Gemini releases an update and that whole feature becomes a free add-on overnight,” he says. “Trying to anticipate what the world will look like even two years from now is incredibly difficult. Saying, ‘We know what’s coming, we’re going to build the perfect solution and launch it in two years,’ is the same mistake people made a decade ago.” 

The industry is also recreating old silos. The digital silos of old - digital teams, digital strategists and chief digital officers - became redundant once it was realised that digital needed to be integrated.

“It’s the same with AI. You can have specialists, but unless the whole business embraces it and it runs everywhere, you won’t succeed. You can’t leave it in a corner with five or ten people.” 

The onus needs to be placed on creating expert, AI-powered industry professionals, Angelides feels. No matter how much data or research AI has access to, a fundamental limitation of the tech is that it cannot understand the full context of the world in real time, nor the opportunities that exist.  

“It’s responsive but you need really talented and experienced people to point it in the right direction, ask the right questions and then know which of the answers is actually correct. From a strategy point of view, it’s not about finding 1,000 different insights, but - as Dave Trott said - ‘sacrificing’ and focusing on the best and most distinctive way for a brand to stand out and drive growth - to spot an opportunity others are missing.”  

Historically, agencies have been heavily reliant on data. “Businesses, including agencies, have so much data because they’ve been told for years to save and build as much as humanly possible.” AI now makes it possible to deal with the previously impossible task of sifting through all of this data, giving strategists in particular the ability to distill it into insights that are actionable.  

“Now it’s exciting because AI and data are a magical combination. As a strategist, I can look through billions of data signals and have confidence I’ve explored all areas before making a recommendation. It allows me to truly understand human nature, what customers are doing, and the patterns we’re seeing.” 

Another habit of the industry is to view technology solely as an efficiency tool. AI can, of course, save time and make processes simpler, but Angelides is quick to point out that its potential as an effectiveness driver is still under-discussed. 

“Marketing isn’t about helping businesses save money. Marketing is about investing correctly to drive growth - which benefits both the customer and the business. I think the industry needs to change the way it talks about AI - reframing it as an effectiveness driver, not just an efficiency tool. Don’t get me wrong, it will do loads of efficient things, but that’s not where its greatest value lies.” 

Angelides is aware that there are always going to be conversations about efficiencies, but he affirms that every relationship in the industry is based around growth targets. For him, advertising has always asked: which agencies, which teams and which partners can demonstrate that they will give the brand the biggest chance to grow - and grow disproportionately against their competitor set and the category? “While it is nuanced, this is how all digital technology and approaches have been assessed - and how they should always be measured. It’s not just about being the cheapest. Cheapest doesn’t win. The most effective - the growth driver - is what wins.” 

The most obvious difference between AI and much of the tech that has come and gone in the last five years is its immediate, obvious value. NFTs and QR codes, Angelides notes, were "great pieces of technology”, but businesses continually had to justify their use and build out scaled, everyday applications.

Generative AI, however, has proven to demonstrate immediate usefulness. “Whether you’re talking to a business leader, a student, or a family about to go on holiday, people can quickly say, ‘Oh, I get why I’d use this - this is actually useful.’”

For Angelides, it is this value for everyday users that the advertising industry needs to focus on. “Too much conversation frames AI as business tech, but the reality is: it’s also consumer tech, like social media. People - and therefore customers - are adopting it globally, and that is hugely important.”

Businesses often focus on use cases: training staff, improving products, boosting efficiency and effectiveness. Angelides stresses that they must also focus on how customers use AI and how that shapes their expectations.

“When they’re shopping or looking for information, what will they expect in the future? Most conversations focus on the business side - efficiency, effectiveness, internal application. But from a marketing perspective, my interest is also the audience: how are customers experiencing AI? How can we create solutions that align with how they want to use the technology, rather than just what’s most convenient for the business?” 

The ways in which people are adopting AI now is already influencing the shape of future marketing and media ecosystems. The technology will undoubtedly create a whole new set of media channels. Brands are already catering towards the new AI form of SEO - Generative Engine Optimisation (GEO).

Angelides likens it to the early days of Google and the internet. “Initially, people focused on what it replaced - fewer letters, smaller postrooms, less reliance on libraries for research. But the bigger impact came from the new channels, specialisms, and approaches that emerged: CRM, email marketing, search, social media. Thirty years ago, marketing was mainly out-of-home, TV, print, and radio. Look how varied it is now.”

The complexity of channels will only grow, but Angelides sees this as exciting. “This is why I love this industry - there are always more touchpoints, more ways people socialise, connect and shop. Brands have always had to adapt. They’ve had to figure out how to appear naturally in new spaces, like social media ten years ago. AI will spark similar conversations: how do we appear authentically in these new AI environments? How do we add value for people instead of just trying to sell our products?

Ultimately, he believes the industry must stop treating AI as only something to apply to businesses and start understanding it as something customers are actively shaping.

“Whatever strategy a business adopts, it has to reflect what people want. The industry still has a lot to learn about how consumers will shop, search and decide in a world where AI is part of everyday life. That’s where the real opportunity - and challenge - lies.”