Meta to Launch AI-Driven Ad Creation for Facebook and Instagram by 2024

The owner of Facebook and Instagram is set to assist advertisers in fully developing and targeting campaigns with artificial intelligence tools by the end of next year, a move that is shaking up the traditional marketing sector. Meta, led by Mark Zuckerberg and also owner of WhatsApp, aims to directly attract brands’ marketing budgets, presenting a challenge to the advertising and media agencies that manage client campaigns and finances.

The upcoming AI tools, first mentioned by the Wall Street Journal, will enable brands utilizing Meta’s advertising platform to generate ads using a product image and planned marketing expenditure. Currently, Meta’s platform provides some AI tools that allow advertisers to modify existing ads prior to their appearance on Facebook and Instagram. However, the new offerings may disrupt the conventional roles of ad creation, planning, and purchasing managed by agencies, while also catering to a wider range of advertisers with limited budgets who may not afford marketing services.

These AI tools will be capable of producing the entire advertisement—covering imagery, video, and text—and targeting it to users in accordance with a client’s budget. For instance, geolocation targeting could allow a holiday company’s ad to provide tailored offers based on users’ prospective travel destinations.

In response to news of Meta’s impending AI integration, investors quickly sold shares in some of the globe’s largest marketing services. WPP shares fell by 3% in early trading, while French companies Publicis Groupe and Havas experienced declines of 3.9% and 3%, respectively. Zuckerberg, who is keenly focused on advancing AI-powered advertising, has described the development of these new tools as a “redefinition of the advertising category.” In April, Meta revised its spending outlook for the upcoming year, planning to invest between $64 billion and $72 billion in capital expenditures, which includes funding for AI infrastructure.

Meta has clarified that enhancing its AI capabilities for brands is not an effort to eliminate traditional agencies. Alex Schultz, Meta’s chief marketing officer and vice-president of analytics, stated in a recent LinkedIn post, “We believe in the future of agencies. We see AI enabling agencies and advertisers to devote their valuable time and resources to the creativity that counts. Although we anticipate increased automation in marketing, the function of agencies will become increasingly essential due to their capability to plan, execute, and measure across various platforms.”

Schultz emphasized that AI tools would assist in “leveling the playing field” for small and medium-sized businesses that may lack the time or resources to engage agencies. “Millions of small businesses depend on our platform for growth,” he noted. “For those who cannot collaborate with an agency or are too busy to concentrate on their creative or targeting strategies, AI is poised to help balance the competitive landscape.”