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63% of Marketers leveraging AI use generative while 54% use predictive AI is marketers’ top priority – and biggest headache
Marketers are prioritising AI implementation over all other initiatives this year, according to new Salesforce research in the ninth State of Marketing report.
With customer standards for personalisation continuing to rise year after year and marketing technologies constantly evolving, marketers need to act fast to keep up. Many see AI as a hack to do just that: a go-to for sharper personalization and efficiency, and now, creativity at scale with generative AI. Yet data challenges — from unification, integration, and security — are slowing marketing teams down.
With insights from over 4,800 marketers across 29 countries, the State of Marketing report highlights how top-performing marketers are outdoing their competition by embracing AI and other new opportunities while mitigating these data, trust, and security challenges.
Marketers pursue more tailored engagement amid rising customer expectations
Increasingly, marketers aim for more customised experiences based on detailed data like individual behaviours, preferences, interactions, or other specific indicators. And they are looking to AI to deliver more insights, predictions, automated workflows, and content. As a result, marketers consider having a data and AI strategy of utmost importance. On average, today’s marketers are able to fully personalise across five channels, with high-performers tailoring six channels and underperformers managing to fully personalise across only three.
Channels where content is easy to test and iterate on the fly, like mobile messaging, email marketing, and social media, see the most advanced personalization efforts. On the other hand, channels demanding more production time and planning like audio, organic search, and TV/OTT have the most work to do with 43%, 42%, and 41% seeing full personalization, respectively.
Marketers rev up AI adoption, but underperformers stall out in the evaluation stage
Marketers are pulled in many directions, and are focused on improving AI adoption. However, they’re struggling to actually implement AI and create cohesive journeys, among other difficulties.
Ironically, AI could be one tool to help teams overcome such challenges. Salesforce Chief Marketing Officer Ariel Kelman highlights how companies are entering “a new era of AI, catalysed by the generative gold rush,” and that the technology is being embraced by marketing organisations. As he sees it, “marketers are leading the charge by embracing rapid advancements in the technology to better connect with customers and prospects.”
Marketers are eager to implement AI into their own work streams: 75% are either experimenting with or have fully implemented AI in their operations. A closer look reveals that the embrace of the technology varies by performance level.
The majority of high- and moderate-performing teams are already rigorously testing, tweaking, and incorporating AI into their operations. Still, more than one-third of underperformers have yet to graduate from the consideration phase. In fact, high-performing marketing teams are 2.5x more likely than underperformers to have fully integrated AI into their operations. Until underperformers pivot from passive planning to hands-on action, AI’s advantages will continue to elude them.
Marketers embrace AI to predict, create, and integrate at scale
Sixty-three percent of marketers leveraging AI say they use generative while just over half (54%) are using predictive. And despite its relative novelty, generative AI use cases already rank among marketers’ favourites alongside predictive applications. As a result, teams are harnessing both types of AI for critical use cases like automating customer interactions and generating content — activities that will augment creativity and accelerate productivity.
Despite AI enthusiasm, concerns about trusted data remain
Compared to their peers in other departments, marketers are especially concerned about falling behind on generative AI adoption. Eighty-eight percent of marketers worry about missing out on generative AI’s benefits, compared to 78% of sales and 73% of service colleagues.
Even so, senior marketers remain cautious, citing concerns such as data and job security. Compared to their peers further up the corporate ladder, on-the-ground team leads are particularly wary about job stability. One in four team leads are worried AI will replace their job, compared to one in five executives. For their part, CMOs are most concerned with data leaks, with 41% citing data exposure as their top concern compared to 29% of VPs and 32% of team leads.
While data leaks are marketers’ number one generative AI concern, not having enough of the right data falls at number two. To capture enough valuable information, marketers are primarily leveraging customer service data and transaction data, showing an effort to partner with colleagues across sales and commerce departments to accomplish this. However, unification of that and other data — such as unstructured data from emails, NFTs, and more — remains a challenge.
In fact, only 31% of marketers are fully satisfied with their ability to unify customer data sources. What’s more, only approximately half of marketers say their systems automatically and regularly update with data from other departments.
Without fully integrated data, marketers’ ability to derive sharp insights is blunted, leaving core activities like analysing performance, suppressing audiences, and building campaigns powered by out-of-date or incomplete information. It even jeopardises marketers’ top priority: effectively leveraging AI.
A closer look at the survey results shows that fully integrated data is more common among high-performing marketing teams, suggesting that investing in unification can give marketers an edge. As Kelman explains, “a strong data foundation will be critical to AI success for marketers as they work to bring together and unify customer data for real-time activation.”
Telecommunications and digital services provider, Globacom, has partnered with the Federal Ministry of Communications, Innovation and Digital Economy and Huawei Nigerian Enterprises, to provide digital access to 7,000 remote communities in Nigeria with the commissioning of the pilot project in Isuanin Kura in Ibwa 2, Gwagwalada, on the outskirts of the Federal Capital Territory, Abuja on Wednesday.
The project, which is championed by the Ministry, will deliver 2G/3G/4G services, free public Wi-Fi access, digital healthcare and remote learning capabilities to the over 12,000 residents of the community.
Minister of Communications, Innovation and Digital Economy, Dr. Bosun Tijani, was full of commendation to Globacom and Huawei for supporting President Bola Tinubu’s commitment to addressing the connectivity crisis affecting more than 20 million Nigerians who currently lack basic telecommunication access in the country.
Said he: “If you bring out your phone in many communities, there is no network at all. This is costing the country significantly because people cannot access financial services, medical care, or education”, adding that this also poses governance challenges as disconnected areas are difficult to administer.
“Where you live should not determine your access to opportunity. We are using innovation to ensure every Nigerian, regardless of location, can thrive in the digital age”, the Minister added.
Globacom’s Group Chief Technical Director, Mr. Sanjib Roy, who spoke on the project said the company worked with the Ministry and Huawei to bring up the site by providing the Microwave backhaul link and access to Globacom’s full core network resources and also manage the operation of the site to ensure uninterrupted voice and data services for the community.
“The Smart Education facility allows for young students within the community to receive education remotely, with the teachers being in Abuja or any other part of the world, while Healthcare delivery has been revolutionised through connected medical equipment that enables remote consultations between patients in Ibwa and doctors and specialists in urban-locations”, Mr Roy explained. The site and all the equipment are powered by solar thereby ensuring clean environment and uninterrupted power supply.
During the inauguration, the system’s effectiveness was demonstrated with the leader of Isuanin Kura, Ibwa 2 Community, Chief Abubakar Bamaiyi, having a live consultation with a medical doctor in Abuja, while the Minister and other guests watched as the students in the local school were being taught via online video by a teacher in Lagos, using equipment provided by Huawei.
Mr Kazeem Kaka, Globacom’s Head of Division, North West, who also spoke at event, said, “For Globacom, this is a continuation of our long-standing mission to democratize access to communication. Since 2003, we have remained at the forefront of efforts to lower the barriers to connectivity—making telephony, internet, and data services more accessible and affordable for all Nigerians.
“Today’s launch reinforces that commitment. We are particularly excited about the impact this initiative will have on education, healthcare, and economic empowerment of Ibwa people”.
In his remarks, Mr Terrens Wu, Managing Director, Huawei Nigerian Enterprises, said his company was proud to be part of the initiative to provide connectivity, and promote learning and healthcare in rural communities through digital technology. His company later gave out 120 affordable smartphones to the community to help them have access to telephony.
National Identity Management Commission (NIMC) has unveiled an ambitious plan to register at least 95% of Nigerians into the National Identity Database before the end of 2025, aligning with President Bola Tinubu’s Renewed Hope Agenda on digital governance and inclusive development.
Speaking at a media briefing in Abuja, NIMC Director-General Abisoye Coker-Odusote outlined the agency’s strategy, which includes expanded registration centers, improved infrastructure, and intensified public sensitization campaigns.
“As part of our efforts, we are launching the Ward Enrollment Exercise to ensure that at least 95% of Nigerians are captured by December,” she stated.
NIMC reported that over 120 million Nigerians have already been enrolled, with the target set to register an additional 100 million before year-end. Coker-Odusote emphasized that the exercise would provide the government with accurate population data, enabling better planning and resource allocation.
Addressing concerns about data security and public trust, the NIMC boss assured Nigerians that robust measures have been put in place to safeguard personal information.
She highlighted initiatives such as the NIN Authentication system, which allows individuals to control access to their data through user consent management.
Additionally, NIMC is collaborating with security agencies to track and shut down fraudulent NIN websites while working alongside the Nigeria Data Protection Commission (NDPC) to ensure that enrollment officers receive proper certification in data handling.
“To foster trust, we are ensuring that all personnel handling data are certified experts through NDPC training programs,” she explained.
Looking ahead, Coker-Odusote revealed that NIMC is actively working to integrate all ministries, departments, and agencies (MDAs) to eliminate fragmented operations.
She also disclosed plans to launch a Public Key Infrastructure (PKI) initiative, which will enhance trust in government transactions and digital interactions.
“In the near future, MDAs will be able to implement digital signing across platforms, seamlessly exchanging documents within and between various establishments, thereby advancing e-government and the digital economy,” she added.
The mass enrollment drive, coupled with the strengthening of cybersecurity frameworks, positions Nigeria for an inclusive and efficient national identity system that will serve as a foundation for digital transformation.
As artificial intelligence (AI) continues to transform the global digital landscape, two prominent technology leaders have issued urgent warnings and strategic calls for Nigeria and Africa to adopt a unified, governance-driven approach to AI development, emphasizing that trust, regulation, and cybersecurity are more important than ever.
L-r: Dr. Krishnan Ranganath, Regional Executive, West Africa, Africa Data Centres, Adewale Obadare, chief visionary officer, Digital Encode, Amrish Singhal, chief operations officer, Spectranet, Engr. Ike Nnamani, Managing Director, Digital Realty Nigeria and Rudman Muhammed, Managing Director, Internet Exchange Point of Nigeria, at the 16th Africa’s Beacon of ICT Merit and Leadership awards held in Lagos recently.
At the 2025 Africa’s Beacon of ICT Merit & Leadership Award (ABoICT 2025), held over the weekend in Lagos, Professor Adewale Peter Obadare, Chief Visionary Officer of Digital Encode, and Amrich Singhal, Chief Operating Officer of Spectranet, independently but powerfully echoed the same sentiment: AI without governance is a ticking time bomb.
Delivering his keynote on “AI Governance, Standardization and Cybersecurity in the AI Era,” Prof. Obadare warned against the rising trend of “AI washing”—where companies label basic software or services as “AI” to capitalize on hype, often without the underlying technological integrity or oversight.
“People are calling everything AI today, from photography apps to basic automation, but no one is talking about AI governance,” he said.
Drawing comparisons to the early days of the internet, Obadare cautioned that failing to integrate security and governance into AI architecture could lead to far-reaching consequences. “We are repeating the same mistake we made with TCP/IP, which was not built with cybersecurity in mind. We cannot afford to make that error again.”
He emphasized that governance should not be seen as a hindrance but as an enabler of safe innovation. “Governance is not a brake to stop movement; it is a brake to make movement safe,” he said.
Citing international standards like ISO/IEC 42001 and ISO/IEC 38507, Obadare called for responsible innovation grounded in clear ethical guidelines, stressing the importance of securing the core components of AI: data, models, and infrastructure.
Echoing similar concerns, Amrich Singhal, chief operating officer, Spectranet in his presentation themed “Responsible AI and Nigeria: Balancing Innovation, Regulation, and Cybersecurity,” stressed that “the countries that will benefit most from AI are not necessarily those with the most powerful models, but those with the most trusted systems.”
Singhal painted AI as a double-edged sword, capable of boosting national productivity while also enabling new forms of cyber manipulation—from deepfakes to identity theft and disinformation. “AI can clone voices, create fake personas, and even undermine democracy. It’s no longer a question of readiness, it’s a question of urgency,” he declared.
He acknowledged Nigeria’s potential due to its youthful, tech-savvy population and its expanding use of AI across sectors like healthcare, agriculture, education, and oil exploration.
However, he criticized existing regulatory structures such as the Nigeria Data Protection Regulation (NDPR) and NITDA’s 2023 draft AI framework as being “underdeveloped, underfunded, and poorly enforced.”
Both experts called for a multi-stakeholder approach to AI governance. Prof. Obadare warned of real-world failures, such as Microsoft’s racist chatbot Tay, Amazon’s gender-biased recruitment AI, and Uber’s fatal autonomous vehicle incident, not as tech failures, but as governance failures.
He also cited cybersecurity breaches, including the 2023 hacking of OpenAI’s ChatGPT and the leak of DeepSeek’s API keys and user data on launch day, to stress that “the danger is not just in the algorithms, but in how we design and deploy them.”
Singhal proposed a three-tiered strategy to build Nigeria’s AI resilience: government must champion AI education, create safe innovation sandboxes, and enforce data laws; private companies must adopt ethical and secure design practices; and civil society must raise awareness of digital rights and AI risks—especially for vulnerable populations.
In a firm conclusion, Prof. Obadare urged that “governance must be embedded by design,” warning that irresponsible innovation has already proven costly and called on both developers and policymakers to act before Nigeria’s AI future becomes a liability rather than a strength.
Meanwhile, Singhal closed with a stark challenge: “AI is already here. The question is not whether to use it, but how. Nigeria must choose whether AI will be a great equalizer or its greatest vulnerability.”
As the nation moves deeper into the AI era, the message is clear: building trust, enforcing cybersecurity, and embedding responsible governance must be at the core of Nigeria’s AI journey, before it’s too late.
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