{"id":5972,"date":"2026-05-14T20:00:00","date_gmt":"2026-05-14T18:00:00","guid":{"rendered":"http:\/\/stocks-future.com\/?guid=7b734b4266aaca79154fa114508619c7"},"modified":"2026-05-14T20:00:00","modified_gmt":"2026-05-14T18:00:00","slug":"canva-study-marketers-lean-into-ai-for-creative-work-but-consumer-trust-is-the-new-battleground","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/stocks-future.com\/?p=5972","title":{"rendered":"Canva Study: Marketers Lean into AI for Creative Work \u2013 But Consumer Trust Is the New Battleground"},"content":{"rendered":"<p class=\"bwalignc\">\n<i>Seven in ten consumers say AI-generated ads are \u201cmissing their soul,\u201d even as 99% of marketing leaders plan to increase AI budgets in 2026&#8232;<\/i><\/p><ul class=\"bwlistdisc\">\n<li>\n99% of marketing leaders plan to increase AI budgets in 2026<\/li>\n<li>\n41% view AI as a \u201cdirector\u201d and 39% as a \u201ccollaborator\u201d within marketing teams<\/li>\n<li>\n87% say the best advertising still needs a human touch<\/li>\n<li>\n68% of consumers don't mind AI in ads if it makes them more helpful or relevant<\/li>\n<li>\n74% would feel more comfortable with AI advertising if formal policies governed its use<\/li>\n<\/ul><p>SAN FRANCISCO--(BUSINESS WIRE)--Canva, the world\u2019s leading visual communication platform, today released its third iteration of \u201cThe State of Marketing and AI\u201d report, revealing a defining tension in modern marketing: AI is unlocking unprecedented speed and scale, but both marketers and consumers are grappling with how to balance that velocity with authenticity.<\/p><br\/><a href=\"https:\/\/mms.businesswire.com\/media\/20260513648384\/en\/2803842\/19\/M%26AI_Newsroom_Stat_Cards_1.mp4\"><img src=\"https:\/\/mms.businesswire.com\/media\/20260513648384\/en\/2803842\/5\/M%26AI_Newsroom_Stat_Cards_1.jpg\" \/><\/a><br\/><a href=\"https:\/\/mms.businesswire.com\/media\/20260513648384\/en\/2803842\/19\/M%26AI_Newsroom_Stat_Cards_1.mp4\"><img src=\"https:\/\/mms.businesswire.com\/media\/20260513648384\/en\/2803842\/21\/M%26AI_Newsroom_Stat_Cards_1.jpg\" \/><\/a><br\/><a href=\"https:\/\/mms.businesswire.com\/media\/20260513648384\/en\/2627110\/5\/WORDMARK_LOGO_-_GRADIENT_-_150DPI.jpg\"><img src=\"https:\/\/mms.businesswire.com\/media\/20260513648384\/en\/2627110\/22\/WORDMARK_LOGO_-_GRADIENT_-_150DPI.jpg\" \/><\/a><br\/><a href=\"https:\/\/mms.businesswire.com\/media\/20260513648384\/en\/2627110\/5\/WORDMARK_LOGO_-_GRADIENT_-_150DPI.jpg\"><img src=\"https:\/\/mms.businesswire.com\/media\/20260513648384\/en\/2627110\/21\/WORDMARK_LOGO_-_GRADIENT_-_150DPI.jpg\" \/><\/a><p>\nThe study, conducted in partnership with The Harris Poll, surveyed 1,415 marketing leaders and 3,547 consumers across the United States, United Kingdom, Australia, France, Germany, Japan, and India.<\/p><p>\nMarketing teams are under pressure to produce more with less, and AI has quickly become the solution. Today, 97% of marketing leaders use AI in their everyday creative work, and nearly all say they plan to increase their investments in AI to keep up with demand.<\/p><p>\nSeven in ten consumers (70%) say AI-generated ads are \u201cmissing their soul,\u201d and 65% say they are \u201cso obvious it\u2019s laughable,\u201d showing that consumers react more to how authentic an ad feels than to how it was produced.<\/p><p>\n<b>AI Becomes Core to Marketing Operations<\/b><\/p><p>\nMany marketing leaders describe AI as their strategic partner, with 41% saying it functions as their \u201cdirector\u201d and 39% as their \u201ccollaborator.\u201d This closer collaboration between marketers and AI not only leads to significant time savings, but also organizational impact:<\/p><ul class=\"bwlistdisc\">\n<li>\n89% save at least 4 hours per week<\/li>\n<li>\n25% save a full workday (8+ hours) weekly<\/li>\n<li>\n68% see an increase in marketing-influenced business decisions<\/li>\n<\/ul><p>\nHowever, as the marketing world shifts from experimentation to everyday execution, the unintended outcome is volume without vision. The State of Marketing report shows consumers are pushing back against \u201cAI slop\u201d \u2013 content that feels generic, lacking emotional depth, or obviously machine-generated:<\/p><ul class=\"bwlistdisc\">\n<li>\n9x increase in mentions of \u201cAI slop\u201d (<a  href=\"https:\/\/cts.businesswire.com\/ct\/CT?id=smartlink&amp;url=https%3A%2F%2Fwww.meltwater.com%2Fen%2Fblog%2Fai-slop-consumer-sentiment-social-listening-analysis&amp;esheet=54534920&amp;newsitemid=20260513648384&amp;lan=en-US&amp;anchor=Meltwater&amp;index=1&amp;md5=a825a83272fa9e7f616c09c7c44457a9\" rel=\"nofollow\" shape=\"rect\">Meltwater<\/a>)<\/li>\n<li>\n41% of marketing leaders acknowledge it as a considerable challenge<\/li>\n<\/ul><p>\n<b>The Consumer Paradox<\/b><\/p><p>\nConsumer attitudes toward AI in marketing are often contradictory. While 68% say they don\u2019t mind AI in ads if they\u2019re helpful or relevant, 78% say they would rather see ads made by people, even if AI could make them better. Eighty-seven percent say the best advertising still requires a human touch, and 74% are more likely to purchase from an ad created entirely by humans.<\/p><p>\nConsumers also express concern about overuse and sameness:<\/p><ul class=\"bwlistdisc\">\n<li>\n69% believe the future of advertising will look and feel like the same AI-generated slop<\/li>\n<li>\n70% say they can usually spot AI-generated ads because they\u2019re missing its soul<\/li>\n<\/ul><p>\nPersonalization remains another point of tension. While many consumers welcome relevant ads, they object when targeting feels invasive:<\/p><ul class=\"bwlistdisc\">\n<li>\n52% say it is too personal when an ad knows what they are about to buy before they have searched for it<\/li>\n<li>\n58% say they do not want brands using AI to predict what they want<\/li>\n<\/ul><p>\nAmong Gen Z and Millennials, attitudes are more nuanced. Seventy percent say they pay more attention to the \u201cvibe\u201d of an ad versus how it was made, and 69% say they do not mind AI polish as long as real people are featured.<\/p><p>\n<b>Agreement on What AI Cannot Replace<\/b><\/p><p>\nAs AI handles execution, distinctly human skills become more critical. Creative instinct, clarity of voice, and centering the customer aren't things you can create with a prompt. When asked what AI can never replicate, marketing leaders point to capabilities that require emotional intelligence and cultural fluency:<\/p><ul class=\"bwlistdisc\">\n<li>\n42% cite empathy and emotional intelligence<\/li>\n<li>\n41% cite human imperfection that sparks originality<\/li>\n<li>\n41% cite brand intuition and creative judgment<\/li>\n<\/ul><p>\nAs AI takes on more executional work, leaders say their focus is shifting toward strategy and decision-making. Three-quarters (75%) expect creative roles to grow in the next five years, with greater emphasis on imagination, judgment, and direction.<\/p><table cellspacing=\"0\" class=\"bwtablemarginb bwblockalignl\">\n<tr>\n<td class=\"bwvertalignt bwrowaltcolor0 bwpadl0\" colspan=\"1\" rowspan=\"1\"><p class=\"bwcellpmargin\">\n\u201cAI has changed how marketing gets made, but not what makes it effective,\u201d said Emma Robinson, Head of B2B Growth Marketing at Canva. \u201cSpeed and scale matter, but they don\u2019t build trust on their own. The opportunity isn\u2019t only producing more content. It\u2019s building smarter systems where AI drives efficiency while brand governance and creative judgment protect what makes a brand distinctive.\u201d<\/p><\/td><\/tr>\n<\/table><p>\n<b>Consumers Push for Clear Guardrails<\/b><\/p><p>\nAs AI-generated content becomes harder to detect, consumers are calling for transparency and governance:<\/p><ul class=\"bwlistdisc\">\n<li>\n70% believe it will someday be impossible to tell if an ad is AI-made without disclosure; 56% expecting this within 2-5 years<\/li>\n<li>\n74% would feel more comfortable with AI ads if formal company policies governed their use<\/li>\n<li>\n80% wish they could \u201cset\u201d how personal ads get \u201clike a privacy slider\u201d<\/li>\n<\/ul><p>\nConsumers are clear about what builds brand trust: data protection (53%), disclosure of AI use (52%), guarantees that AI isn't replacing jobs (39%), and the ability to opt out of AI ads (37%).<\/p><p>\n<b>The Path Forward<\/b><\/p><p>\nFor marketing leaders, the future is twofold. &#8232;<\/p><p>\nAI investment and deployment must continue. With most teams already embedding AI into daily workflows, the next step is intentional integration: building systems that connect tools, improving AI literacy across teams, and ensuring automation drives measurable efficiency rather than generic output.<\/p><p>\nAt the same time, leaders must actively protect what makes their brands distinctive. As AI makes content production easier, differentiation depends on clarity of voice, creative judgment, and a close understanding of the customer \u2014 whether that is a CTO at a Fortune 500 company or an individual consumer. The brands that succeed will be those that use AI to scale their operations while staying grounded in what connects, resonates, and inspires.<\/p><p>\nFor recommendations on how to navigate the tension between creative velocity and consumer trust, read the full report <a  href=\"https:\/\/cts.businesswire.com\/ct\/CT?id=smartlink&amp;url=https%3A%2F%2Fwww.canva.com%2Fmarketing-ai-report%2F%3Futm_medium%3Dpress%26utm_source%3Dthird_party%26%255b%25E2%2580%25A6%255darketing-and-ai-2026%26utm_content%3Dreport%26utm_term%3Dpress-release&amp;esheet=54534920&amp;newsitemid=20260513648384&amp;lan=en-US&amp;anchor=here&amp;index=2&amp;md5=1404b8e90e0512469b933d27dd8d57b2\" rel=\"nofollow\" shape=\"rect\">here<\/a>.<\/p><p>\n<b>Methodology<\/b><\/p><p>\nThe research was conducted in partnership with The Harris Poll:<\/p><ul class=\"bwlistdisc\">\n<li>\nA global survey of 1,415 marketing leaders at organizations with 500+ employees and 3,547 consumers across the United States, United Kingdom, Australia, France, Germany, Japan, and India.<\/li>\n<\/ul><p>\n<b>About Canva<\/b><\/p><p>\nLaunched in 2013, Canva is the world's leading all-in-one platform for visual communication and collaboration. Built to empower everyone to design, Canva serves the creative and design needs of enterprises, small businesses, consumers, and students in more than 190 countries worldwide. Whether you're a novice taking your first steps in design, or a creative professional seeking powerful tools, Canva ensures users have what they need to transform an idea into something beautiful. Underpinned by the world's most comprehensive library of designer-made content, Canva is powered by a suite of products and proprietary AI tools that elevate how individuals and teams create, collaborate, and communicate with ease.<\/p><br\/> <b>Contacts<\/b> <br\/><p>\n<a  href=\"mailto:comms@canva.com\" rel=\"nofollow\" shape=\"rect\">comms@canva.com<\/a><\/p>","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"<p>Seven in ten consumers say AI-generated ads are \u201cmissing their soul,\u201d even as 99% of marketing leaders plan to increase AI budgets in 2026&#8232;<\/p>\n<p>99% of marketing leaders plan to increase AI budgets in 2026<\/p>\n<p>41% view AI as a \u201cdirector\u201d and 39% as a \u201c&#8230;<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":2,"featured_media":0,"comment_status":"closed","ping_status":"closed","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"footnotes":""},"categories":[1],"tags":[],"class_list":["post-5972","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","hentry","category-infos-businesswire"],"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/stocks-future.com\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/posts\/5972","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/stocks-future.com\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/stocks-future.com\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/stocks-future.com\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/users\/2"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/stocks-future.com\/index.php?rest_route=%2Fwp%2Fv2%2Fcomments&post=5972"}],"version-history":[{"count":1,"href":"https:\/\/stocks-future.com\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/posts\/5972\/revisions"}],"predecessor-version":[{"id":5973,"href":"https:\/\/stocks-future.com\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/posts\/5972\/revisions\/5973"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/stocks-future.com\/index.php?rest_route=%2Fwp%2Fv2%2Fmedia&parent=5972"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/stocks-future.com\/index.php?rest_route=%2Fwp%2Fv2%2Fcategories&post=5972"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/stocks-future.com\/index.php?rest_route=%2Fwp%2Fv2%2Ftags&post=5972"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}