The UK could unlock up to £69.1bn in economic growth by 2030 if the advertising and marketing sector accelerates development of future-ready creative and digital skills, according to a new study from Publicis Media UK. The industry already contributes £109bn a year to the UK economy, but the cost of failing to keep pace with AI is an estimated £10.9bn annually right now - equivalent to losing nearly £29m every day.
Without significant investment in human-AI capability, that figure is projected to rise 40% by 2030, reaching £15.2bn a year under business-as-usual conditions. The researchers compare the loss to wiping out the annual economic output of a city the size of Newcastle.
The productivity gap
Economic modelling from Kingston University London shows that if employees lack the right skills for evolving AI-enabled roles, individual productivity could fall by 24.6%. That gap translates to around £10,584 per employee each year in lost potential. Analysed across the UK's 609,000 advertising and marketing professionals, the skills capability gap equates to the contribution of roughly 150,000 full-time roles.
Niel Bornman, CEO of Publicis Connected Media UK, said: "AI is changing how advertising works. That's clear. But people are still our biggest advantage. It's human creativity, judgement and collaboration that give our industry its economic value and turn technology into something useful. If we want AI to make a genuine difference, we have to invest in the people working alongside it. That isn't optional. It's essential if we want a strong, competitive industry that today's workforce believes in and the next generation wants to be part of."
Fusion skills: the new essentials
Kingston University's research identifies three capabilities - described as fusion skills - that have become essential as professionals work alongside AI systems. These are:
- Smart AI questioning: Asking better questions to get more useful, reliable outputs
- Contextual AI training: Teaching AI how your business works so it reflects your data and ways of working
- Critical human judgement: Making the call on when to rely on AI and when to step in
Smart AI questioning, often referred to as Prompt Engineering, helps professionals extract more accurate and useful outputs from AI systems. When surveyed, 90% of advertising and marketing leaders said fusion skills will be critical to senior leadership effectiveness by 2027.
Dr Evy Sakellariou, Associate Professor and Gen AI Innovation lead for Kingston University's Foresight, Creativity and Future of Work Research Hub, said: "We're no longer talking about human-led AI, but how people can work effectively alongside machines. To do so, all employees will need to develop these advanced fusion skills alongside core human-centric skills. Our work with sector leaders revealed real enthusiasm for these technologies, but also uncertainty about how best to upskill their workforce."
Paula Cunnington, Chief Talent Officer at Publicis Groupe UK, said: "Future success will come from the choices we make now and the people we invest in. That means putting real structure behind it, so people have the tools, training and confidence to thrive alongside AI, especially when the pace of change can feel overwhelming. We need to step up as an industry and take responsibility for building these fusion skills properly and at scale. Do that well, and we build a future that works for our people as much as it does for the wider economy."
Why this matters for creatives
For creatives, the study makes one thing plain: the productivity penalty for ignoring AI skills is not abstract. A 24.6% drop in individual output means fewer resources for the kind of experimental, high-craft work that defines careers and agencies. Building AI for Creatives expertise - particularly the ability to question AI systems effectively and apply critical judgement to their outputs - is quickly becoming a baseline requirement, not a differentiator. The research points to skills-first hiring and promotion pathways, meaning the creatives who invest in fusion skills now will be positioned for roles that don't yet exist, while those who wait risk being left behind as the capability gap widens.
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