The Australian Centre for AI in Marketing (ACAM) has launched a global offshoot to help marketing leaders measure their organisation's AI maturity and turn investment into business results. The Global Centre for AI in Marketing (GCAM) will provide original research, benchmarking and evidence-led insight, with the United States as its first international market.
The US expansion comes through a partnership with The CMO Syndicate, a growth and transformation firm run by experienced chief marketing officers. The group will lead participation in the inaugural US AI in Marketing Benchmark, gathering data from CMOs and senior marketing executives across industries. Findings will be presented at Georgetown University in Washington, D.C., in the final quarter of 2026.
The benchmark will create a baseline for ongoing comparisons between the US, Australia and future participating markets. It moves beyond surveys that track adoption rates or technology spending. Instead, GCAM's diagnostic evaluates organisations across seven maturity drivers: Leadership and Culture; Skills and Capability; Governance, Risk and Brand; Data and Technology Readiness; Use Cases and ROI; Team Design and Workflow; and Roadmap, Planning and Investment.
What the benchmark measures
Results are mapped across six maturity levels, giving marketing leaders a clear view of where they stand against industry peers. The methodology builds on ACAM's 2026 Australian AI in Marketing Benchmark, conducted with Kantar and supported by IBM Australia. That study found 83 per cent of organisations remained at early to mid stages of maturity. None reached the two highest levels.
Louise Cummins, co-founder and CEO of ACAM and GCAM, said the expansion targets a gap between AI spending and organisational readiness. "CMOs don't need more AI tools, they need credible intelligence that shows where their organisation stands, how it compares and what will make the greatest commercial difference next," Cummins said. "GCAM will turn benchmark insight into action. It gives marketing leaders the evidence needed to focus investment, strengthen executive and board conversations, build team capability and create a structured pathway from isolated pilots to responsible, measurable transformation."
For senior marketing executives looking to build these capabilities, structured development paths exist. The AI Learning Path for VPs of Marketing addresses the same gap between investment and measurable returns that the benchmark identifies. CMOs seeking to strengthen board-level conversations about AI maturity can follow a dedicated AI Learning Path for CMOs.
A technology-agnostic approach
GCAM's research is built specifically for the marketing function and takes an independent, technology-agnostic approach. It assesses whether marketing organisations are building the interconnected foundations - leadership, capability, governance, data, workflow and measurement - required to generate sustainable value from AI. Participating organisations contribute to a shared evidence base that will grow to include peer comparisons and track how marketing AI maturity evolves globally.
Ani Matson, founding partner of The CMO Syndicate, said: "AI is advancing faster than most organisations can build the leadership, capabilities and governance needed to use it well. That makes it increasingly difficult for CMOs to know whether they are truly progressing or simply experimenting."
Matson added that the benchmark provides a credible way to understand gaps and priorities. The CMO Syndicate will also contribute to the GCAM Advisory Group and co-host the benchmark's launch at Georgetown University.
Why this matters for marketing leaders
The Australian benchmark revealed a critical gap: widespread AI experimentation without the organisational capability to scale it responsibly or deliver measurable returns. GCAM gives CMOs and senior marketing executives a diagnostic tool to replace guesswork with evidence. Instead of chasing tools, marketing leaders can identify the specific capability, governance or workflow changes that will move their organisation from isolated pilots to structured, defensible AI investment. The US benchmark results, due later this year, will provide the first international comparison point.
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