New national research conducted by Roy Morgan for Ad Standards, Australia’s advertising regulator, reveals strong community concern about AI-generated content in advertising, with most Australians expecting disclosure and transparency as overall sentiment towards advertising softens slightly.
The second wave of Ad Standards’ Community Sentiment Tracker, conducted by Roy Morgan, found that almost three in four Australians (72 per cent) are concerned about the use of AI‑generated content in advertising, particularly its potential to mislead or deceive people with unrealistic or fake content. Around half are also worried that the use of AI could reduce authenticity and creativity in advertising and promote unrealistic body or beauty standards.
Australians believe AI-generated content is already widely used in advertising, with more than half saying that it’s used very often (21 per cent) or often (37 per cent). Despite this, confidence in recognising AI‑generated content remains low, with one in five Australians stating they are not at all confident they could identify when AI-generated content has been used in an ad.
This lack of confidence is reflected in strong expectations around transparency. Around two‑thirds (64 per cent) of Australians believe it should always be necessary to disclose when advertising contains AI‑generated content.
Ad Standards executive director Greg Wallace said the findings reinforce the importance of responsibility, transparency and accountability as advertising technology evolves.
“Australians are telling us that as AI becomes more common, transparency and responsibility in advertising matter more than ever,” he said.
“While there are currently no specific rules around AI‑generated content in advertising, being transparent about AI use may help build trust, meet community expectations and enhance brand perception.”
Beyond AI, the research shows a modest shift in broader community sentiment toward advertising.
Overall sentiment toward advertising has softened, with positive views steady but neutrality declining and negative sentiment slightly increasing. Trust in advertising is also relatively stable, although a modest rise in distrust has contributed to a slight decline in net trust.
At the same time, fewer Australians now believe advertising reflects community standards (34 per cent, down from 37 per cent), although a growing proportion were undecided (36 per cent, up from 32 per cent), suggesting increasing ambivalence rather than outright rejection.
Concern about children’s exposure to advertising has eased, including targeted advertising (down from 54 per cent to 48 per cent) and exposure to inappropriate content, (down from 58 per cent to 51 per cent), compared with the previous quarter.
“Artificial intelligence is reshaping our world faster than most Australians ever imagined, and that change is impacting the advertising industry as much as any other. If advertisers want to maintain trust and community support, they need to be transparent about the use of AI-generated content,” said Roy Morgan CEO Michele Levine.
The quarterly Community Sentiment Tracker helps Ad Standards identify changing community expectations and emerging community concerns, including the rapid rise of AI, and supports effective, community-focused advertising regulation in Australia.
The Ad Standards-Roy Morgan Community Sentiment Tracker Survey was conducted online with a cross-section of 1,000 Australians aged 18+ between 19 February-2 March 2026.
