New Delhi: Integral Ad Science, a global leader in media measurement and optimization, today released its annual Industry Pulse Report, highlighting how media experts are redefining quality in an AI-dominated advertising landscape.
The report reveals that top priorities for 2026 include measuring media quality across social media and connected TV (CTV), ensuring brand safety for influencer and creator content, and monitoring AI-generated media. It underscores the balancing act marketers face between embracing innovation and safeguarding campaign performance.
“2026 marks a turning point in digital advertising. As the boundaries between channels blur — and AI reshapes how content is created, consumed, and measured — industry experts are redefining what quality means in this new era,” said Integral Ad Science CEO Lisa Utzschneider. “Advertisers and publishers alike recognize that marketing opportunities, like those on social media and digital video, come with complexity. The industry’s challenge lies in balancing digital innovation with control — ensuring every impression drives trust and performance.”
While media experts acknowledge generative AI’s potential to deliver speed, personalization, and scale, they are also aware of the risks it poses. Key findings include:
- 61% are excited about AI developments and advertising opportunities within generative AI content.
- 83% view the rise of AI-generated content on social media as a major concern needing monitoring.
- 84–86% expect third-party verification to be crucial for identifying and classifying AI-generated content across digital video and social platforms.
Digital video and social media remain central to media strategies. 88% of respondents cite digital video as a top priority, while 84% highlight social media. Brand safety continues to be essential, with 87% emphasizing the suitability of influencers or creators when advertising next to digital video content, and 82% doing the same for social media.
Media quality is now a cornerstone of campaign performance:
- 86% stress the need to identify, classify, and target AI-generated content within digital video.
- 83% highlight the importance of measuring ad fraud, viewability, and suitability in retail media networks.
- 83% also flag ad fraud and brand suitability as growing concerns in the expanding CTV ecosystem.
- 69% cite ad content adjacency as a major digital media challenge.
“The use of AI and AI-generated content surged in 2025, leaving publishers and advertisers trying to balance both its opportunities and risks,” said Jeremy Kanterman, Vice President of Research and Insights at IAS. “This year’s Industry Pulse report reveals a cautious industry looking to prioritize oversight of AI in digital media in 2026, with the bulk of investment still flowing into digital video, social platforms, and a steadily rising interest in using, measuring, and determining outcomes around influencer marketing.”
The IAS report underscores that while AI and digital innovation offer unprecedented possibilities, advertisers and publishers must navigate a complex ecosystem where trust, transparency, and media quality remain critical to campaign success.
