Last month, The Chartered Institute of Public Relations (CIPR) released the findings of its annual industry survey (State of the Profession Report 2024).

In it, AI has surged to the top of the list of challenges facing the industry, with 38% of respondents viewing AI as the biggest challenge facing the industry over the next 12 months.

In another poll published by the World Federation of Advertisers (WFA), 55% of respondents stated they lack the skills to use generative AI properly, while 80% of the multinational brands surveyed were worried about agency use of AI on their behalf.

It’s clear that the comms industry isn’t fully cognisant of either the risk or the upsides of AI’s role in developing content. More of an effort is needed on implementation, up-skilling, transparency with clients and leadership.

Generative AI tools undoubtedly come with risks – ranging from data privacy, bias, or intellectual property concerns to challenges in model management such as hallucinations - information that seems plausible but is factually incorrect or entirely fabricated.

These extend to reputational risks for businesses and clients – biased or erroneous outputs from models or even deepfakes can be propagated by mainstream sources, and agencies need to be ready for this challenge.

Acknowledging AI’s (very real) limitations by establishing appropriate training and workplace usage agreements with both employees and clients is key. That’s not that the technology should not be responsibly used and experimented with.

Media is an area that is seeing rapid deployment of AI because of the value it can create - it allows people to work more efficiently, and do things that could not be done before. While AI undoubtedly enhances many aspects of communications, those who suggest that more of our work should or will be done by text-gen AI, or ‘plagiarism machines’ as their detractors call them, risk undermining the true value of what the industry does.

AI is a great tool to assist in tasks like media monitoring, summarising content, or improving SEO. However, securing positive coverage, managing media and investor relations, and navigating government requires a deeper understanding and expertise that goes beyond algorithmic output.

Communications involves both the art and social science of analysing trends, forecasting outcomes, and executing strategic programs that benefit all parties. It is a management function that evaluates public attitudes, advises leadership on managing public (or internal) opinion, and aligns organisational policies with the public’s interests. This will always require nuance, originality, and an expert human element—something that AI can never meet by itself.

Whether you’re using and customising publicly available off-the-shelf products – such as ChatGPT, Gemini, LlaMA, Co-pilot – or developing your own proprietary models, it’s important to be aware of its shortcomings and risks, and implement these tools responsibly, effectively and not over-zealously.

AI’s potential is enormous in ways that we are only just beginning to understand, but what is certain is that it will continue to transform our industry. It’s those who are aware of the reality of this technology that will be well-positioned to lead the industry going forward.