Censuswide: CMOs Becoming ‘More Selective’ About AI Use

Are marketing leaders rethinking the ways they use AI? 

According to Censuswide’s 2026 Voice of the UK CMO report, UK marketing leaders are becoming more selective about the ways they use AI, and more of those who have adopted it say the technology is delivering. 

“Marketing in 2026 is defined less by the arrival of new tools than by the judgement required to use them well,” says Nicky Marks, CEO of Censuswide. “CMOs are being more deliberate about where AI earns its place, and our consumer data shows that acceptance can’t be assumed. It has to be earned through appropriate use, transparency and clear benefit.”

AI use among CMOs

According to the report, Generative AI use among CMOs fell from 89% in 2025 to 62% in 2026, with traditional use falling from 78% to 59% over the course of the same time frame. 

Despite this, among CMOs who have adopted AI, nearly two thirds (64%) reported that the technology had exceeded expectations – up from 58% the year prior. 

Almost all AI adopters (99%) reported that they had seen at least one benefit, with better campaign targeting, improved analysis and higher-quality content commonly cited. 

However, CMOs were largely divided on AI’s creative capabilities, with 44% saying that the technology hinders creativity, while 40% saying that it fully or mostly enables it.

The same research also found that CMOs and consumers are seeing AI differently. 

When asked how consumers tend to feel about AI in marketing and advertising, nearly half (44%) of CMOs said they were comfortable, while consumers themselves were more likely to say they were uncomfortable. 

What is the future of AI in marketing? 

These findings represent a wider environment of uncertainty among marketing leaders regarding the adoption of AI. 

At the Future of AI in Marketing Panel at the CXO Summit, Jasper Martens, CMO of PensionBee, warned that the technology is “coming at us fast,” and shared that “the danger is that many businesses will see AI as a cost-saving opportunity, when actually the opposite can be true”.

Panellists at the event also agreed that preserving customer trust and confidence in a brand requires authentic human input – with Jasper advising against replacing human creative development solely with AI tools, arguing that "the actual creative content has to come from your head”.

However, as marketing structures evolve towards environments of both human talent and AI agents, Ashley Gatehouse, CMO of Accenture Edge advised that marketing leaders should focus on actively mentoring early-career professionals.

“AI is going to fundamentally change the way we work, and it's doing it faster than any revolution we have had,” he says.

 “We are going to have human and agentic teams very soon. How are we going to nurture the talent sitting here in 20 years' time?”

Censuswide’s key partners:

• IBM: Censuswide and IBM have an ongoing research and market intelligence partnership. 
• Endava: Endava frequently commissions Censuswide to conduct global market research reports. 
• Cisco: Both Cisco and Censuswide share a long-standing data and research partnership to drive global strategy and establish industry thought leadership.
• 8x8: Censuswide conducted a major global research initiative on behalf of 8x8.