Forty-two percent of CMOs report they have taken steps to monitor and correct misinformation about their brands in AI-generated output, according to Gartner, Inc., a business and technology insights company.

With AI becoming a more influential part of the customer journey, marketers face growing pressure to ensure their brands are accurately represented in AI-generated experiences. A Gartner survey of 408 senior marketing leaders conducted from July through August 2026 found that 61% of CMOs have adapted content strategies to improve machine readability and visibility in AI-driven experiences (see Figure 1). At the same time, 94% plan to increase investment in human touchpoints over the next year.

“As consumers and B2B buyers increasingly rely on AI-powered tools to discover and evaluate brands, inaccurate information can directly influence perceptions and purchasing decisions,” said Sharon Cantor Ceurvorst, VP Analyst in the Gartner Marketing practice. “Marketing leaders can no longer take a passive approach to brand representation in AI-generated experiences. They must build machine-readable brands, so their trusted, distinctive brand elements show up in AI summaries.”

AI-powered search, assistants and agents are increasingly influencing customer decisions, requiring marketers to rethink how brands are represented and discovered online. To succeed in AI-mediated buying journeys, organizations must ensure their content is accessible to both human audiences and AI systems while maintaining trust and consistency across customer interactions.

“As customers delegate more of their purchase journey to AI assistants and agents, the remaining human touchpoints become more consequential,” said Cantor Ceurvorst. “Organizations that create meaningful human interactions while improving their visibility in AI-driven environments will be better positioned to earn trust and influence buying decisions.”

Managing a brand’s presence across both AI-generated and human touchpoints is becoming a core marketing responsibility. Organizations that effectively balance machine-readable brands with meaningful human experiences may be better positioned to influence customer decisions in AI-mediated buying journeys. Gartner