Some global corporations are expanding AI ad production in-house, while analysts say agencies proceed to supply strategy, creative direction, and specialist support.
Executives from Kimberly-Clark, Catalyst Brands, and Target India told Reuters that their teams in India are using AI across parts of the marketing process. These include creating product images and videos, selecting influencers, and localising campaigns. The corporations are also using AI to write down ad copy and optimise campaign performance.
The work is going down inside global capability centres, which many multinational corporations use to support operations across markets. Reuters reported that corporations are using these centres to check AI tools for marketing work that has often involved external production teams.
In-housing is already common amongst major advertisers. WFA and The Observatory International reported that 66% of major multinational brands had an in-house agency, while 21% were considering establishing one.
AI moves more production in-house
Kimberly-Clark said an AI platform inbuilt India has shortened the time needed to create content from 24 days to 2 hours. Deena Dayalan, head of Kimberly-Clark India, said the tool also supports influencer selection and campaign localisation across different markets.
Catalyst Brands, the parent company of J.C. Penney, is testing computer-generated product images and videos for online listings. India Managing Director Nihar Nidhi told Reuters that the approach could reduce the necessity to move inventory all over the world for photo shoots.
Nidhi said the corporate’s Bangalore team is leading work on prototypes and pilots. Some of those tools are near being put into production, he added.
Target is also using AI in its promoting operations. Andrea Zimmerman, president of Target India, said copywriters at Roundel, Target’s ad business, are using AI to supply ads faster and respond more quickly to changing trends.
Zimmerman said the usage of AI is helping business partners move more work through the system. She pointed to loyalty and personalisation as other possible areas of use.
The corporations cited AI use in production-heavy parts of promoting. These include image generation, copy variation, localisation, and campaign testing.
Marketing budgets have remained flat as a share of company revenue. Gartner’s 2025 CMO Spend Survey found that marketing budgets remained at 7.7% of overall company revenue, unchanged from the previous 12 months.
Agencies face pressure to prove specialist value
A Gartner survey of 405 senior marketing leaders last 12 months found that nearly all were using AI to some extent. The survey also found that AI investment accounted for more than 15% of selling budgets.
Gartner analyst Jay Wilson told Reuters that AI is contributing to stronger interest in in-house agencies. He said agencies that previously competed on size and scale can not depend on that advantage alone.
Wilson said strategic and inventive considering will change into more details of difference.
IAB has also reported quality and governance issues linked to AI use in promoting. IAB reported that 70% of marketers had experienced a minimum of one AI-related incident. These included hallucinated outputs, biased or inappropriate content, and off-brand material.
Analysts told Reuters that agencies are expected to stay a part of the promoting process, partly due to public distrust of AI and the specialised skills agencies provide.
Brian Wieser, CEO of advisory firm Madison and Wall, said the query is whether clients still see value in expertise. He said corporations can produce average work internally if that is enough, but higher-value work still will depend on specialist judgement.
Production work that when required external teams, longer timelines, and physical shoots is increasingly being tested inside company-owned operations. Analysts told Reuters that agencies are expected to stay relevant where clients need specialist judgement and expertise.
(Photo by Anthony Rosset)
See also: OpenAI makes ChatGPT ads easier for ecommerce brands
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