Artificial intelligence is quickly becoming a focal point of modern advertising, powering everything from media planning to creative optimisation. A new global report from programmatic media partner MiQ shows that while 72% of marketers plan to apply AI in more ways over the next 12 months, only 45% feel confident in their ability to apply it successfully. In short, while adoption is rising fast, marketers are signaling an uneasiness in how best to put it to work.
In India, 79% of marketers plan to use AI more in their roles over the next year, and 72% already use AI tools in some or all of their projects. However, only 46% feel fully confident in their teams’ ability to use AI to optimize against KPIs, underlining the global readiness gap.
The AI Confidence Curve report, surveying 3,169 marketers across 16 countries, sought to understand usage and readiness levels around different aspects of AI in advertising. Responses paint a picture of an industry in transition – eager to advance, yet still developing the skills and systems needed to have AI fulfill its potential.
Marketers are already using AI for all kinds of tasks. They are currently most comfortable applying it to content creation 40%, marketing optimization 38%, and social media management 38%, all areas where GenAI tools like ChatGPT are most useful. In India, these trends are even more pronounced: marketers most frequently use AI for social media management, visual design, and content creation, reflecting strong adoption of generative AI tools. Google’s Performance Max 69% and Canva 66% are the top AI-based tools among Indian marketers.
Of those marketers who say they are not confident, 40% report that their organization doesn’t understand AI or large language models (LLMs) well enough. This is due to a lack of training and understanding that pushes marketers away from powerful bespoke solutions and back toward more simplified, general AI tools and solutions.
There are many factors holding down marketers’ confidence in using AI tools. 38% cite a lack of training, 42% mention limitations placed on their ability to share data with their chosen tools, and 44% list their inability to track results against the right goals. In India, 69% of marketers say that lack of expertise and adequate training remains the top challenge for AI inclusion and adoption, while 54% believe that AI’s role in marketing is still not well understood.
While global marketers report reliance on outdated metrics like clicks and web traffic, 62% of Indian marketers still depend on older engagement metrics such as CTRs and social engagement, and 57% track website metrics as success measures. Many marketers still rely on proxy metrics like clicks or web traffic, which fail to capture AI’s broader business impact. What’s more, nearly two in five senior marketing professionals 38% admit they’re still building the education, measurement, and workflow systems needed to use AI confidently and consistently. That same number 38% of both junior and senior marketers say they haven’t received proper training on the tools they already have.
Indian marketers lead globally in consumer mindset and activity-based targeting, with 45% planning campaigns around browsing, scrolling, and shopping behavior – the highest among all markets. They also show strong preference for YouTube 80%, social media 61%, and digital video 58%, highlighting the country’s rapid evolution in multi-channel digital advertising.
Despite concerns, optimism remains high as adoption accelerates. To increase confidence and move along the curve, the report highlights a number of ways marketers can move forward with purpose: adopt partner-agnostic solutions, integrate AI into performance measurement, invest in AI literacy across teams, and preserve human expertise.
“We discovered that most marketers are bunched together at the early stages of a confidence curve,” said Jordan Bitterman, Chief Marketing Officer at MiQ. “We’re at the start of a journey that will ultimately see us all move up the curve as we apply AI to more of our mission-critical work. Usage currently outpaces readiness by 27 percentage points, and we see that as pure opportunity. To close the gap, industry leaders must tap into tools and training.”
“India marketers are actively adopting AI across functions today, from creative strategy to campaign optimization,” shared Varun Mohan, Chief Commercial Officer India, MiQ. “AI tools will have a tremendous role to play in the future of marketing as a force multiplier, and teams that prioritise early adoption and upskilling for AI will find themselves significantly ahead of the curve. This is a competitive edge that will define the next phase of data-led marketing transformation in India.”
“Every marketer is trying to find the balance between learning and leading with AI,” Bitterman added. “The ones who advance fastest will treat confidence as a capability, something built every day through connection, curiosity, and collaboration.”
