Net Conversion, the Orlando-based impact media agency, today released the third wave of its MORE Intelligence Consumer Pulse series, revealing a sharp split in how people accept artificial intelligence: enthusiastically as a shopping assistant, and skeptically when it creates advertising aimed at them.
More than half of consumers (54%) say they trust a brand less when its ads look AI-made. The penalty lands hardest among adults 18 to 29 (38% “strongly agree”), and 63% of adults under 40 say AI-generated content has already changed how they interact with brand messaging.
Yet these same consumers lean on AI to decide what to buy: 54% now use AI tools at least sometimes to research purchases, rising to 60% under 40. Forty-five percent of AI users say an AI recommendation increases their trust in a brand.
“Consumers see AI as a tool that works for them. They’ll happily take a shortlist from a chatbot, then check it against the brand’s own site, YouTube and Reddit,” said Net Conversion CEO and co-founder Ryan Fitzgerald. “But they resent AI when it’s pointed at them. What feels like efficiency inside an agency reads as indifference to the customer.”
AI expands the consideration set, then sends shoppers off to verify
Net Conversion also finds AI widening the path to purchase, routing shoppers through traditional channels to confirm what AI told them:
- 74% of consumers who research with AI say its recommendations expand the number of brands they consider.
- Consumers rate AI “extremely helpful” for comparing brands (52%), answering product questions (48%) and summarizing reviews (47%).
- Nearly all AI users cross-check a recommendation before buying, turning to brand websites (59%), search engines (57%), retailer pages (55%), YouTube (53%) and Reddit (53%).
- Just 2% are comfortable turning a purchase over to AI entirely, such as letting a tool fill a cart or book travel.
Attention is getting harder to buy, and repetition is a leading cause
Consumer tolerance for digital advertising is dropping even as time spent on digital channels grows. More consumers report spending additional time with AI assistants than any other channel since July 2025 (44%), followed by YouTube (39%) and streaming video (35%).
- 52% say they are actively tuning out, skipping or blocking digital ads more than a year ago.
- 48% frequently encounter the same ad across multiple platforms, and 34% frequently see ads unrelated to their location, age or interests.
- Standard pre-roll and mid-roll placements hold attention best in streaming, preferred by 30% each, while interactive overlays (9%) and clickable video ads (11%) rank last.
- 88% regularly use a second device while watching TV, and a quarter search for a brand on their phone right after seeing its ad, rising to 31% among adults under 40.
Economic outlook defines the highest-value consumer
Brand loyalty erosion has slowed: only 16% of consumers say they are less loyal than a year ago, down from 34 percent in January and 40% in July 2025. Sixty-four percent report no change.
Sixty-two percent of consumers say the economy is worse than a year ago. But the remaining optimists behave differently: they are three times more likely to describe themselves as highly loyal brand advocates than pessimists (31% vs. 10%).
Also notable:
- 76% of optimists use AI tools for product research, compared with 48% of pessimists.
- 71% of optimists say an AI recommendation increases their trust in a brand, compared with 38% of pessimists.
Fitzgerald says the research shows the key to reaching consumers is intent, not demographics. “It’s the person arriving from an AI summary, or reaching for a phone during a streaming break,” he said. “Those are the moments that convert, and that’s where media plans need to point.”
Methodology
The 2026 MORE Intelligence Survey was conducted online by Net Conversion via the Pollfish platform among 1,500 U.S. adults aged 18 to 64 with household incomes of $50,000 or more who had made a significant non-essential purchase in the prior three months. It is the third study in Net Conversion’s MORE Intelligence Consumer Pulse series, following surveys in July 2025 and January 2026.
The full report, Decoding the Modern Consumer Mindset, is available at netconversion.com.
About Net Conversion
Our analytics-driven agency thrives on disruptive thinking to drive impact, not optics. We tap into what your customers really want and connect them to your brand, building holistic datasets through Conversionomics, our proprietary MarTech platform, to hold paid media accountable. The result is real-time performance and enduring business transformation. Learn more at netconversion.com.
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