I started noodling on this topic with the premise that the AI genie is out of its bottle and it ain’t going back in.* So, given the concerns around AI – jobs, IP rights, slop, poor quality, users being lazy, let alone environmental and community concerns around data centers – it got me thinking: How can the ad industry sustainably use AI in marketing?
Let’s find out.
Quigley-Simpson co-founder Gerald Bagg notes that, for the most part, the environmental impact of AI is not a “routine client question” yet.
“Most organizations remain more focused on capability, speed, cost, governance and accuracy. But environmental impact will become harder to ignore as AI moves from occasional experimentation to continuous production at scale,” Bagg says.
Neil Clark, chief sustainability officer of MSQ, parent of Big Spaceship, also says it’s not a top question from clients, but he expects more clients will start asking it.
“It’s a significant topic internally,” Clark adds. “Our people raise it regularly, they want to act on it and they push us to do better. That matters because our clients’ teams are made up of the same kind of people. If our own employees are asking these questions, theirs will be too.”
What is AI’s environmental impact?
While there is some data online about the energy usage required for AI prompts and creations, many of the big players do not disclose such details or are current with it.
Let’s start small: A typical interaction on OpenAI’s ChatGPT uses about 0.3 watt-hours of electricity. Since a standard LED light bulb uses 10 watts, that AI query equates to about 2 minutes of powering the bulb.
How about images? A generative AI image takes approximately 1.2 watt hours, or the same energy as having an LED light bulb on for 7 minutes.
Video? That can take 30 to 950 watt hours, depending on quality. Looking at the higher end, creating a generative AI video can equate to leaving that light bulb on for four days.
If we compound the above information across the entire industry, that’s A LOT of light bulbs with the switch on.
With that being said, the energy to process prompts is becoming more efficient. Google says that, in May 2024, the medium Gemini prompt used 33 times more energy than it did a year later. The tech giant says software optimization, including improvements in models, contributed to the increase in energy efficiency.
Note: Scroll to the bottom to see how Ad Net Zero’s Global Media Sustainability Framework and AdGreen help measure the ad industry’s AI-related emissions.
Do consumers want AI in their advertising?
A May Bentley University-Gallup Business in Society Survey showed that 73% of US adults don’t trust businesses (either not much or not at all) to responsibly use AI. While that’s an improvement from 2023 (78%), mistrust this year is up when compared to 2025 (69%).
Let’s get closer to marketing.
One in 5 millennials has a negative view of AI’s use in marketing, which soars to nearly 2 in 5 when you ask Generation Z, per an IAB study released earlier in 2026.
When seeking an emotional connection, generative AI may not be the way to go. Kantar found that, while generative AI-created ads can spark emotion in consumers, that emotion is often not what was intended and is negative.
How about the sought-after trust factor with consumers? Klaviyo found that 31% of global consumers put less trust in a brand that uses generative AI, though 61% were neutral.
Sustainable use of AI in marketing
Getting back to the premise, there are ways today to use AI in marketing that minimize its environmental impact.
“The biggest step that you can take is the call you never make,” MSQ’s Clark says. “Plenty of tasks don’t need an AI at all, and simply asking ‘does this actually need a model?’ avoids a surprising amount.”
Clark adds that, “When something does need AI, the next question is whether it’s going to the right model, which isn’t always the smallest one. A model that’s too weak for the job just sends you round in circles regenerating answers, and that wastes far more [energy] than choosing the capable option the first time.
“Equally, reaching for the most powerful model for a task [that] a lighter one could handle is poor practice.”
Quigley-Simpson’s Bagg echoes that approach, noting that strategic thought is needed when using AI tools.
“Avoid endless generation simply to produce more alternatives. Reuse approved outputs rather than recreating them. … Reserve highly computational tools, particularly image and video generation, for situations in which they create genuine value,” Bagg says.
Bagg also says agencies and clients need to expect more from their partners.
“Organizations should also ask their technology partners for greater transparency about energy use, data-center efficiency, model size and the source of the electricity supporting their systems. Marketers cannot manage what providers do not disclose,” he says.
Clark asserts that using task-specific AI tools may be more efficient than a “general purpose giant.”
His agency took this approach with MSQ Assist, an internal AI platform. MSQ Assist “routes each task to the most appropriate model rather than defaulting to the biggest. Assist is also built on our own knowledge of our clients and is heavily templated, so it steers people towards focused, well-structured prompts and processes rather than a blank box/page every time,” Clark explains.
Sustainable considerations for adland
Today and going forward, Clark says that there are two key reasons for thinking about sustainable use of AI in advertising.
The first is simple: “AI has a real and fast-growing energy and water footprint, and marketing is adopting it at pace, so the totals mount up quickly,” Clark says.
The second leans into the important role the marketing industry plays in society.
“Marketing doesn’t only consume energy, it shapes what people see as normal and desirable. If we use AI to manufacture over consumption, or we model wasteful, throwaway AI habits ourselves, we scale that behavior across millions of people. We could just as easily do the opposite.
“Therefore, AI’s impact isn’t only about our own footprint, it’s about whether an industry with this much influence chooses to use one of the most powerful tools it has ever had thoughtfully, or not,” Clark says.
The use of AI in marketing, Bagg says, also plays into a much broader question that agencies always need to ask”
“Did this work need to be created, and did it produce enough value to justify the resources consumed?
“The more consequential and potentially controversial argument is that responsible AI use may sometimes mean deciding not to use AI at all. That challenges the prevailing assumption that greater AI adoption is inherently progress, and it is a sufficiently distinct position to warrant attention,” Bagg says.
As Clark and Bagg point out, the question about sustainable AI in marketing is not so much about the use of AI, it goes to the foundational questions that must be asked at the start of projects: What do you want to accomplish and what’s the best way to do it. And, of course, you want to do it as effectively and efficiently as possible.
* As Generation Z gets more ingrained in the workforce, it will have a say in AI usage. Also, if you disagree or have thoughts on the premise, email me.
AI impact: Ad industry resources
There are three ways that Ad Net Zero’s Global Media Sustainability Framework captures emissions from AI use: Unit operations formulae, “asset manipulation” unit operations and “corporate overhead emissions” allocation.
Ad Net Zero Global Director Jo Fenn says the framework will likely expand from creative workflow to include media delivery, optimization and other ways, including AI as a media channel.
The AdGreen Carbon Calculator measures ad production emissions and, in 2025, rolled in AI measurement. The calculator includes an Early Insights component that enables marketers to gauge the emissions impact of creative choices before being finalized.
Fenn says the tools available offer a lot of potential. “What’s exciting – and challenging – is that these show us both progress and potential. The industry is measuring more production activity than ever before, but we know we’re still only seeing a small part of the picture. Every additional production measured unlocks opportunities to reduce more emissions and save more money – without compromising creativity.”
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