The marketing landscape of 2026 is fundamentally different from just two years ago. Artificial intelligence has moved from experimental technology to essential infrastructure, reshaping every aspect of how brands connect with consumers. As we reach the midpoint of the decade, the AI marketing trends emerging this year will define the competitive landscape for the remainder of the 2020s and beyond.

Consumer behavior is undergoing its most dramatic transformation since the advent of mass media. As artificial intelligence becomes deeply embedded in daily life, we're witnessing the emergence of entirely new patterns of how people discover, evaluate, and purchase products and services. The changes we're seeing in 2026 represent not just technological advancement, but a fundamental evolution in human decision-making and brand relationships.

The era of the executive who simply delegates technology decisions is ending. In 2026, the leaders who will define their industries are the ones who build alongside AI, not the ones who wait for a briefing deck about it. Matt Britton, CEO of the AI-powered consumer intelligence platform Suzy and bestselling author of Generation AI, is among a rare breed of Fortune 500-serving executives who don't just talk about artificial intelligence on conference stages. He builds production software with it, every day, that is already being used by some of the world's largest brands.

Generation Alpha—children born between 2010 and 2025 represents a fundamental shift in human development. Unlike every generation before them, these young people are growing up in a world where artificial intelligence, virtual assistants, and smart technology are not innovations but basic infrastructure. As the oldest members of this generation reach their sixteenth birthday in 2026, marketers face an unprecedented challenge: how do you connect with consumers who have never known a world without AI?

The relationship between consumers and artificial intelligence has reached a tipping point. In 2026, we're witnessing the most significant transformation in consumer behavior since the advent of e-commerce. AI is no longer a futuristic concept—it's the invisible hand guiding millions of purchasing decisions, personalizing experiences, and fundamentally altering how people discover, evaluate, and buy products and services.

AI expert Matt Britton breaks down ChatGPT's new advertising model on Schwab Network. Learn why AEO is the new SEO and how brands must adapt to AI-powered discovery

At CES 2026, one of the clearest signals across consumer AI was the emergence of unified life systems—platforms that treat health, finances, and behavior as interconnected variables rather than isolated domains.

The video excerpt tied to this article was captured during my Top 10 Consumer AI Trends of 2026 presentation in New York, where I argued that the next consumer operating system will not live on a phone screen. It will live across the body, the calendar, and the balance sheet.

Live at CES, I sat down with Tom Donaldson, Senior Vice President and Head of Creative Play Lab at LEGO Group, to unpack LEGO Smart Play—a new system that adds responsiveness, sound, light, and physical feedback to the LEGO brick universe without abandoning what made LEGO iconic in the first place.

AI is automating knowledge work fast. The edge now is human: problem framing, creativity, trust, and leadership. Here’s how to future-proof your career—Human by Design.

Discover the 10 AI consumer trends reshaping 2026. From chat-based shopping to job displacement, learn how artificial intelligence will transform business and daily life.

Matt Britton addressed and inspired 4,000 technology executives at Nationwide Insurance about the implications of the AI revolution on the insurance industry and the broader business and economic landscape.

We truly live in amazing times. At a recent talk I gave in front of 5,000 real estate professional at the National Association of REALTORS® Conference, I showed a bespoke demo of the ability to turn a real estate listing into a custom song and music video.

AI is transforming real estate, but human trust, judgment, and negotiation aren’t going anywhere. Here’s what I shared at NAR NXT about the future of agents.

The search bar is dying. "Agentic Commerce" is rising. Discover the 3 seismic AI consumer trends defining 2026 and how C-Suite leaders must pivot now.

Target Keyword: AI Consumer Trends 2026

In my recent interview with Bloomberg, I shared insights on one of the most significant shifts in consumer behavior we've witnessed since the dawn of the internet: the rise of AI as the gateway to commerce, information, and everything in between.

Matt Britton breaks down the biggest shift in consumer behavior since the invention of Google. Over 60% of people now use ChatGPT instead of traditional search — and this changes everything about how brands get discovered.

We’re entering the era of GEO (Generative Engine Optimization), where AI models — not search engines — decide which brands get recommended. Matt explains why specificity, structured content, and contextual relevance now determine whether your brand shows up in AI-generated answers…or disappears entirely.

In my recent conversation with Rustam Dastoor, the EVP of Marketing and Communications for MasterCard in the Americas, I was reminded that timeless ideas in marketing don’t die—they evolve. The “Priceless” campaign, launched in 1997, remains one of the most enduring brand platforms in history. Yet what struck me most wasn’t its longevity—it was its continued relevance in a world defined by AI, data, and ever-shorter attention spans.

AI isn’t the enemy it’s the next evolution of learning. Matt Britton explains why banning AI from schools will harm tomorrow’s leaders and how business and education must unite to shape the future of work.

Matt Britton, CEO of Suzy and author of Generation AI, reveals how he built a 25,000-hour AI-powered customer intelligence system — without writing a single line of code. In this exclusive article, Britton explains how tools like Zapier, Browse AI, and GPT-4 transformed Suzy’s sales and marketing operations by turning Gong call transcripts into real-time insights, customer sentiment analysis, and automated marketing content. The result: a fully integrated, no-code AI engine that predicts churn, improves sales performance, and generates data-driven marketing assets — all powered by the authentic voice of the customer. This piece breaks down how CEOs and go-to-market leaders can design similar systems to drive growth, unlock hidden data, and compete in the age of AI automation.

Big Tech layoffs mark the beginning of a new era. Matt Britton, author of Generation AI, explains why automation is replacing deterministic work—and how critical thinkers, creators, and problem solvers will define the workforce of the future.