TLDR: A new global report by programmatic media partner MiQ, titled ‘The AI Confidence Curve,’ highlights a 27-point disparity between the rapid adoption of AI in advertising and marketers’ confidence in successfully implementing it. While 72% of global marketers plan to increase AI usage, only 45% feel confident in their abilities. In India, 79% plan to use more AI, but only 46% are confident in optimizing it for KPIs. The report identifies a lack of training, data sharing limitations, and inadequate measurement as key challenges, urging industry leaders to invest in partner-agnostic solutions, integrated performance measurement, AI literacy, and human expertise.
Mumbai, November 12, 2025 – A recent global report from programmatic media partner MiQ, dubbed ‘The AI Confidence Curve,’ has brought to light a substantial 27-point gap between the escalating use of artificial intelligence in advertising and the industry’s preparedness to leverage it effectively. The study reveals that while a significant 72% of marketers globally intend to expand their application of AI over the next year, only 45% express confidence in their capacity to do so successfully.
In India, these trends are even more pronounced. A striking 79% of Indian marketers plan to integrate AI further into their roles, with 72% already utilizing AI tools in some capacity. However, a mere 46% feel fully confident in their teams’ ability to employ AI for optimizing against Key Performance Indicators (KPIs), underscoring the global readiness deficit.
The ‘AI Confidence Curve’ report, which surveyed 3,169 marketers across 16 countries, including 200 respondents from India, aimed to gauge the levels of usage and readiness concerning various facets of AI in advertising. The findings depict an industry in flux – eager for advancement, yet still grappling with the development of requisite skills and systems to unlock AI’s full potential.
Jordan Bitterman, Chief Marketing Officer at MiQ, commented on the findings, stating, “We discovered that most marketers are bunched together at the early stages of a confidence curve. 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.”
Currently, marketers are most comfortable applying AI to content creation (40%), marketing optimization (38%), and social media management (38%), areas where generative AI tools like ChatGPT prove highly beneficial. Indian marketers show even stronger adoption in these areas, frequently using AI for social media management, visual design, and content creation. Google’s Performance Max (69%) and Canva (66%) are cited as the leading AI-based tools among Indian professionals.
Challenges to AI adoption are multifaceted. Globally, 40% of unconfident marketers attribute this to their organization’s insufficient understanding of AI or large language models (LLMs). Other significant barriers include a lack of training (38%), limitations on data sharing with chosen tools (42%), and the inability to effectively track results against appropriate goals (44%). In India, 69% of marketers identify a lack of expertise and adequate training as the primary hurdle, while 54% believe AI’s role in marketing is still not well understood.
The report also highlights a reliance on outdated metrics. While global marketers often depend on clicks and web traffic, 62% of Indian marketers still use older engagement metrics like CTRs and social engagement, and 57% track website metrics. This reliance on proxy metrics often fails to capture the broader business impact of AI. Furthermore, 38% of senior marketing professionals admit they are still developing the necessary education, measurement, and workflow systems for confident AI use, and an equal percentage of both junior and senior marketers report inadequate training on existing tools.
Despite these challenges, optimism for AI’s future remains high. The report outlines a clear path forward to bridge the confidence gap:
Adopt partner-agnostic solutions: Utilize tools that integrate multiple platforms and data sources to provide comprehensive insights.
Integrate AI into performance measurement: Directly link AI systems to campaign KPIs and outcome data for real-time evaluation and tangible business impact.
Invest in AI literacy across teams: Implement ongoing AI training to enhance competence in interpreting outputs and applying insights.
Preserve human expertise: Ensure experienced marketers remain involved to apply judgment, maintain accountability, and validate AI recommendations.
Varun Mohan, Chief Commercial Officer India, MiQ, emphasized India’s proactive stance: “India marketers are actively adopting AI across functions today, from creative strategy to campaign optimization. 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.”
Bitterman concluded, “Every marketer is trying to find the balance between learning and leading with AI. The ones who advance fastest will treat confidence as a capability, something built every day through connection, curiosity, and collaboration.”
Also Read:
- India’s Workforce Embraces AI: Over 40% of IT and Gig Professionals Utilize AI Tools, Employability Rises to 56%
- India’s Evolving Workforce: The Dual Impact of Artificial Intelligence and Growing Female Engagement
The study’s methodology involved a partnership with Censuswide in September 2025, surveying 3,169 marketers across 16 countries, with a specific focus on 200 respondents from India (55% agency professionals and 45% brand marketers). The survey covered AI usage, confidence levels, funnel-based marketing strategies, audience insights, and measurement practices.
