The thing that impresses me the most about generative AI
is its ability to digitize the entire marketing process,
from ideation to content creation to activation.
In a matter of minutes, you can identify consumer segments,
come up with product innovations that are relevant for the segments,
test them with a virtual consumer panel and then produce ad copies,
but also product descriptions and even entire websites
that talk about these products for consumers in a way that feels relevant
and human-like.
There are two reasons why generative AI
is particularly important for CPGs.
The first is that historically CPGs have been less data-rich than,
let's say, retailers, banks or telecom operators.
As generative AI is pre-trained on a lot of public data
they can now, with less amounts of data, leverage the full potential of AI
without having to invest in very large efforts to collect data.
Second, a lot of competitive advantage and growth
in CPG is driven by creation.
Creating new products, new experiences, and new content.
And this is where generative AI excels.
There's been a lot of talk about hallucinations,
but in the context of creation, hallucinations can be a good thing.
The fact that generative AI
will not give me extremely precise answers,
but will think about relevant ideas for consumers that look just like me,
can be a very powerful thing when it comes to innovation.
Those who win will be the ones who will be able to provide
the best personalized experiences for their consumers.
And here, category leaders are advantaged because they typically have
the largest amount of consumer data that is relevant for their category
and that they can leverage to make generative AI models even more relevant.