AI in the advertising industry is currently still in a phase of exploration, where possibilities and limitations are just being examined. But the advertising agencies are in disagreement whether to anticipate the tremendous potential of AI with fear or joy. Therefore, this empirical study defines the status of the AI usage of Swiss advertising agencies and the impact that AI will have on them. Additionally, it identifies the improvements through AI and provides a recommendation for Swiss advertisers on how to prepare for the advances of AI.

The research is based on a literature review and an empirical part. The literature review includes definitions, AI players and most importantly describes current AI use cases in the advertising industry. The focus of the study is the empirical part, where interviews with advertising agencies, AI experts and creative minds were conducted.

The analysis showed that the Swiss advertising agencies are very interested in AI and that they are already using it to some extent in their daily business. However, the use of AI in advertising is currently restricted to process optimisation due to several barriers like the lack of knowledge and the technological infrastructure. Nevertheless, the auspicious potential of AI to draw conclusions from tremendous amounts of data could put advertisers in a position, where their advertisements communicate one to one with the customer. Using AI for content creation is not yet implemented, but there is an enormous demand for AI tools which support the human creative process. Furthermore, the study showed that AI is probably going to have an impact on advertising agencies organisation and strategy. Hence, advertising agencies should prepare for that impact by extending their knowledge about AI, experimenting with AI and increasing their collaborative alliances with various stakeholders of the advertising industry. Additionally, the effective use of AI could assist advertisers to gain competitive advantage. Finally, the study can be used as a guide for advertisers, who are not certain if and how they should prepare for AI.