Advertising and Marketing Communication in the Generative Era

This is the second Research Topic of a series. The first volume can be found here.Artificial intelligence has evolved from a predominantly analytical and automation-oriented technology into an increasingly active component of marketing communication. Alongside established applications such as data analysis, predictive analytics, recommendation systems, programmatic advertising, campaign optimization, and effectiveness measurement, recent advances in generative AI and large language models have significantly expanded the range of AI applications in marketing. AI systems can now participate directly in the creation of advertising copy, images, video, and other forms of branded content, while supporting increasingly sophisticated forms of personalization and interaction. The question is therefore no longer simply whether AI can contribute to marketing communications, but how its growing capabilities affect communication processes, creativity, effectiveness, consumer perceptions, and organizational practices.Research in this area has developed considerably in recent years, yet the pace of technological change continues to open new gaps. Recent work has highlighted the potential of AI to improve online advertising effectiveness through personalized and contextually relevant content (Vangelov, 2025), while developments in large language models are opening new possibilities for consumer and marketing research (Sarstedt et al., 2024). Beyond commercial communication, AI applications are also transforming interactions between organizations and their audiences, including the use of machine learning to enhance responsiveness and citizen engagement in digitally mediated public communication (Vrabie, 2025). Understanding these developments requires attention to how marketing communication is planned and delivered, how creative content is produced, and how organizations relate to the people they address.Generative AI represents a particularly significant development in this transformation. The ability to generate and adapt text, images, audio, video, and synthetic media at scale creates new opportunities for creative experimentation, personalization, and human–AI collaboration. At the same time, these capabilities raise important questions concerning transparency, authenticity, privacy, intellectual property, algorithmic bias, and responsibility. The responsible application of generative AI in advertising therefore requires attention not only to technological and creative opportunities but also to the ethical principles that should guide its implementation (Sands et al., 2024). Understanding consumer responses to AI-generated and AI-assisted communication, as well as developing appropriate measures of its effectiveness, consequently represents an increasingly important research agenda.Against this background, this Research Topic aims to advance understanding of the role of AI in the creation, implementation, integration, and assessment of marketing communications. It welcomes research addressing established applications of AI as well as emerging developments associated with generative AI, large language models, synthetic media, and increasingly personalized forms of communication. Particular attention is encouraged to the relationship between technological capabilities and human creativity, consumer experience, communication effectiveness, ethical responsibility, and the changing professional practices of marketing communication.Themes of interest include, but are not limited to:• consumer responses to AI-generated and AI-assisted content, including trust, authenticity, and the effects of disclosure• the measurement and evaluation of AI-generated and AI-assisted campaign effectiveness• the use of generative AI and large language models to produce advertising copy, visual content, video, and synthetic media• human-AI collaboration in the creative process and its consequences for creative work• AI-driven personalization and hyper-personalization, and the conditions under which they become counterproductive• virtual influencers and AI-mediated brand communication• the role of AI across the marketing communications mix, including advertising, public relations, sales promotion, personal selling, and integrated approaches• how organizations implement, govern, and optimize AI-supported communication campaigns• customer data, privacy, transparency, intellectual property, and the regulation of AI in marketing communications• the effect of AI on employment, professional roles, and competencies in marketing communications.We welcome empirical, theoretical, and conceptual contributions, including experimental, survey-based, qualitative, and computational studies, that deepen understanding of the opportunities, limitations, and implications of AI for contemporary marketing communications.Submissions should make a clear contribution to communication or marketing scholarship. Manuscripts reporting the technical development, training, or benchmarking of AI systems, without addressing communication processes, audiences, creative practice, or organizational behavior, fall outside the scope of this Research Topic.Information and Instructions for AuthorsManuscript summaries (Frontiers' name for abstracts) of up to 500 words will be considered until 4 December, 2026. Authors are encouraged to submit a manuscript summary before submitting a full manuscript.Accepted article types: Original Research, Brief Research Report, Review, Mini Review, Systematic Review, Conceptual Analysis, Hypothesis and Theory, Perspective, Policy and Practice Review, and Opinion. Topic editors: Nikola Vangelov, Catalin Vrabie, Lyubomir Lyubenov, Diana Petkova Source: https://www.frontiersin.org/research-topics/85185/advertising-and-marketing-communication-in-the-generative-era