A gap has opened between how advertising professionals and younger consumers view AI-generated advertising, according to research highlighted in a May 2026 Forbes report. A study from the Interactive Advertising Bureau found that while 82% of ad executives believed Gen Z consumers feel good about AI-generated ads, only 45% of Gen Z consumers actually said they did.

The nearly 40-point difference points to a misread of audience sentiment as brands increase their use of generative AI in marketing. The finding arrived during a stretch of high-profile AI advertising missteps in 2026, when several brands faced public criticism after AI tools produced distorted or off-brand creative that circulated widely on social media.

The research described a market in which the efficiency gains of AI-generated content can come at the expense of consumer trust. Some viewers reacted negatively to ads they perceived as low-effort or artificial, a response marketers have labeled a backlash against so-called AI slop. A number of brands responded by running campaigns that explicitly emphasized human-made creative.

For advertisers, the data underscored a disconnect between internal assumptions and audience reaction. The report suggested that leaders weigh transparency and creative quality rather than assume younger audiences uniformly welcome AI-generated work. The figures added quantitative weight to a debate that had played out in individual brand incidents throughout the year.

Source: Forbes - https://www.forbes.com/sites/melissawheeler/2026/05/28/ai-ads-trigger-backlash-heres-what-research-says-leaders-can-do/