The rapid advance of generative AI is transforming advertising production. While these technologies hold the promise of slashing timelines and increasing output, they're also triggering a host of new complexities for marketing and procurement leads to navigate.

We recently spoke with Scott Kemper, an executive producer at the creative agency Droga5 (a BBS Worldwide partner), to make sense of this new world. He shared his insights on how AI is driving value in the production workflow today, the increasingly crucial role of governance, the continued importance of human judgment and relationships, and much more.

Here are a few key takeaways from our conversation.

Fundamentally a Value Driver

While AI can undoubtedly cut the costs of advertising production, Scott argues that its most powerful benefit is driving value. He cites the ability of AI to enable smarter, more efficient production and elevated output.

"AI is making it easier to operationalize scopes and budgets, allowing us to analyze the data and discover possible pathways so we can deliver work for clients in a more effective and efficient way," he says. "I see AI as more of a value proposition than a cost-reduction proposition."

Creating Proofs of Concept

Agencies are regularly leveraging AI to develop lower-funnel content, such as social and digital out-of-home advertising. Within this realm, Scott notes, AI can be particularly useful in creating proofs of concept.

"If we're working on storyboards or mood boards, AI can help us visually articulate with great precision what we have in our minds rather than try to convey that to an illustrator," he says. "It lets us refine design ideas, animation ideas and even animatics for significantly less cost and with greater speed.

"And with animatics in particular, the fidelity is much higher. So, we're able to more accurately assess how the piece will resonate with the broader market that will view the content in the real world."

More Versioning, Fewer Reshoots

Today, a single deliverable often takes countless forms. Digital ads, for instance, have to meet the specific technical and sizing specs of various platforms (e.g., TikTok, Pinterest, Instagram). You also need to create multiple versions, each tailored to different demographics, regions and other variables.

AI makes it easier to check these boxes. Scott presents the example of a photo shoot featuring a family of four on a picnic. Traditionally, you needed to get one shot of the entire group, then a tighter shot with just two people, and so on.

"Now you can just get what I call one 'master shot,'" he says. "Then you can tell AI, 'Give me a new image using this shot, but lose persons B and C, and give me person A and D sitting in the same location.' Since you don't need to come back another day for another shot, you're reducing costs."

A Human-Led Process

By accelerating many aspects of advertising production, AI can generate cost savings for clients. However, it's critical that clients understand the tradeoffs that can come with speed.

AI isn't a substitute for human expertise. Experienced professionals must be involved to decide when to leverage AI — and how best to do it. Making those choices requires conversations between the client and the agency as well as subjective judgment that is beyond AI's current capabilities.

"The client may say, 'We want you to do this project again, but we want you to really lean on some new tech so you can do it for 10% less,'" Scott says. "We'll figure it out, but we'll also set expectations on how this can impact quality and the creative touchpoints that the client is used to having."

"AI is only as good as the people directing it," he adds. "The process still needs to be human-led. Not just 'human-in-the-loop,' but truly human-led."

Governance and Risk Management

Without proper guidance, AI can create hidden risks that become expensive later. The biggest concern by far, according to Scott, is intellectual property and usage rights. Some AI tools may not be trained on reliable sources. Others may not provide assurances and protections that the client and the agency demand.

Risk management is thus central to AI adoption. Together, the agency and the client must take the time to carefully vet, select and approve AI tools.

"Procurement leads should be working with their tech and legal counterparts to ensure they're asking the right questions to confirm they're working with a partner who can deliver creative with the minimal possible risks," Scott says. "It takes an open, ongoing dialogue both internally and with the agency to understand this rapidly evolving landscape."

Placing a Premium on Transparency

Contracts guiding AI usage, too, require thoughtfulness and transparency on the part of the client and the agency. Members of both parties should come together to craft language that fully discloses all AI usage, including which tools are being used, and clearly lays out the associated risks.

"We'd never do something with an emerging tech that involves AI without getting explicit approval from the client," Scott says. "Once everyone feels heard and understands the variables and risks, you can lock arms and go into it together. Nothing is impossible when you operate as a team and have the hard discussions upfront rather than withholding information."

Not a Replacement for Relationships

Although AI is making major inroads in advertising production, Scott insists the resulting changes will be less dramatic than many people anticipate. Why? Because it can't replace what matters most: relationships.

"Artificial intelligence is a great tool, but it's not 'artificial relationships' or 'artificial empathy,'" he says. "It's not a substitute for the partnerships and the bonds of trust built between agency leaders and clients, producers and creatives, executional partners and agencies."