When we decided to partner with Microsoft once again and devote the entire Relevance Report to the topic of Artificial intelligence, I wondered if AI’s impact on communications, over the past 12 months, has been significant enough for us to develop 40 new pieces of content. Based on past experience, I questioned the PR industry’s appetite for early adoption of a new technology, especially one that could threaten its own existence.

Happily, my concerns were unfounded. 

The results from our second annual AI survey with WE Worldwide reveal a leap forward in AI adoption. Fears, so present just a year ago, have been replaced by a newfound energy. Of course, AI still presents challenges – misinformation, intellectual property, bias – all thoroughly explored in these pages. Yet, the momentum is real. 

The content of this year’s Relevance Report confirms that communicators are actively adopting AI. Large agencies lead this transformation, many have named Chief AI Officers and built dedicated teams to push the envelope on experimentation and engagement for themselves and their clients. Corporate teams, though cautious due to security concerns, are growing AI’s application across every layer of their business. Meanwhile, smaller agencies and startups are tapping into AI to gain a competitive edge.

This year’s report, with essays written by Microsoft communicators, USC trustees and faculty, and Board Members of the Annenberg Center for Public Relations, is filled with specific examples of professionals using AI in their daily work. Edelman’s Matt Harrington talks about enlisting AI to identify influencers. Microsoft’s Steve Clayton explains the use of AI for meeting transcription. Dave Tovar writes about how AI enabled Grubhub to deliver meals to new moms. Marshall Professor Steve Lind previews AI tools that aid with the development of new business leads. 

Other insights are sprinkled throughout these pages. WE’s Melissa Waggener Zorkin shares how our joint research uncovered a powerful trend: AI activation surges when senior leaders champion the adoption of AI surges. Golin’s Chief AI Officer, Jeff Beringer, pushes this notion further, urging leadership to build AI cultures of experimentation.

And our student contributors share forward-looking ideas: Michael Kittilson on the application of synthetic audiences, Amrik Chatham on tools that can be used to counter misinformation and deep fakes.

On the flip side, several contributors address the challenges with AI. Julia Wilson writes about how algorithms can create racial bias. The Dialogue Project’s Russ Yarrow and Bob Feldman explore how Generative AI may increase polarization. Heather Rim from Optiv outlines how to prevent potential cybersecurity threats.

You get the message. AI isn’t just being discussed. It’s being activated in every aspect of our business, and this is just the beginning.

We’ve barely left the starting line in what’s going to be an ultramarathon. If you’re already running, pace yourself. If you’re not, lace up!  The race is on!

Fred Cook has worked at Golin for over 30 years, during which he has had the privilege to work with a variety of high-profile CEOs, including Herb Kelleher, Jeff Bezos and Steve Jobs. He has also managed a wide variety of clients, including Nintendo, Toyota ,and Disney. In 2014, Cook published Improvise: Unconventional Career Advice from an Unlikely CEO, which shares the wisdom he gained as a cabin boy on a Norwegian tanker, doorman at a 5-star hote,l and chauffeur for drunks. In 2015, after speaking on college campuses around the world, Fred accepted an additional position with the University of Southern California as the director of the USC Center for Public Relations at USC Annenberg, whose mission is to shape the future of public relations and those who will lead it — through research, education and thought leadership.