IAB Europe’s 2026 Impact of AI on Digital Advertising Report Reveals Rising Investment, Growing Agentic Expectations and Demand for Practical Industry Guidance
24th September 2026, Brussels, Belgium - IAB Europe, the leading European-level industry association for the digital advertising ecosystem, has today released its 2026 Impact of AI on Digital Advertising Report at DMEXCO, revealing how AI is becoming increasingly embedded across advertising operations as organisations move towards implementation, investment and governance.
Developed by IAB Europe and members of its AI Working Group, the annual study examines how organisations across the digital advertising ecosystem are adopting AI, preparing for emerging capabilities and managing associated risks.
The results show an industry moving from adoption towards more established implementation. AI use for marketing is widespread at 86%, while among those answering the investment questions, 72% report higher general AI investment than in 2025. Governance is also becoming more established, with 78% identifying a formal owner for AI governance.
Expectations around agentic advertising are also building, with more than half expecting agentic ad buying to reach operational use or scale within the next year. Larger organisations are further ahead on autonomy: among respondents who answered the question, 86% of those from organisations with 501 or more staff report their most advanced production agentic system at Level 2 or above, compared with 48% of those with up to 500 staff. At Level 2, people and agents jointly plan, delegate and execute.
Commenting on the findings, Dimitris Beis, Data & Innovation Strategist at IAB Europe, said, “This year’s findings shed light on what leveraging newer AI capabilities really means for the digital advertising ecosystem, from the criteria used to evaluate AI-based solutions to the level of autonomy currently implemented in production systems. Ambition remains ahead of practice in areas such as agentic trading, although the results suggest strong interest and continuing investment. For industry leadership, the practical questions are familiar: where is the value, have we established the conditions to capture it, and who is accountable when something goes wrong?”
Key Findings from the Report:
AI Adoption is Widespread, While Agentic Use is Still Emerging - 86% of respondents say their organisation uses AI for marketing, while 58% expect agentic ad buying to reach operational use or scale within the next year.
Investment is Rising as Efficiency Drives Value - 72% report higher general AI investment in 2026 than in 2025, across business functions, while 59% are increasing investment in AI marketing technologies. Operational efficiency is the most commonly selected measure of AI effectiveness, cited by 69% of respondents, although respondents rating AI’s current performance in advertising operations gave it an average score of 2.76 out of 5.
Governance is Becoming More Formal, But Gaps Remain - 78% identify a formal owner for AI governance. However, only 48% of respondents have AI guidelines specifically for advertising and marketing, while a lack of expertise or training remains the most commonly cited barrier to adoption.
Security Tops the List of AI Concerns - Security ranks as the number one AI-related concern, with privacy ranking second, although responses vary widely across the sample. Respondents also highlighted wider operational pressures, including resource constraints and the challenge of managing legal, commercial, ethical and security risks together.
Demand for Practical Industry Guidance is Clear - 62% say they would benefit from AI marketing guidelines developed by an industry association, while 38% are still assessing the impact of the EU AI Act.
Katharina Schneeberg, Head of Innovation & Technology at BVDW & IAB Europe's AI Working Group Co-Lead, also commented, “The findings show that AI adoption is no longer the key challenge. Organisations are now focused on scaling AI across their business, establishing governance and translating experimentation into tangible business impact.
As agentic capabilities continue to evolve, companies will need practical guidance, shared frameworks and real-world examples to deploy these systems responsibly and effectively.
The next stage of AI maturity will be defined by an organisation’s ability to integrate AI at scale and demonstrate its impact on business outcomes.”
The findings will help inform the priorities of IAB Europe’s AI Working Group, which brings organisations from across the digital advertising ecosystem together to develop practical guidance and research, gather industry input and share knowledge through webinars, workshops and use case showcases.
The full report can be accessed here.
To find out more about IAB Europe’s AI work and how to get involved, please contact communication@iabeurope.eu.
