The AI conversation in MENA has moved beyond experimentation.
That’s the central finding of the MMA AI Adoption Study 25 conducted in collaboration between MMA Academy and Kantar Insights, between October 6 and December 4, 2025. The research surveyed 115 CMOs and senior marketing executives across South Africa, MENA, and Türkiye, including 42 respondents from MENA.
The data shows that AI in marketing and customer experience is no longer confined to isolated pilots. In MENA, 40 percent of organizations say they are scaling AI, expanding use cases and deepening application. Another 46 percent are in the testing phase, while 13 percent remain in scoping mode. Just 2 percent say they have not started at all.
The testing era is rapidly giving way to deployment.
High Awareness, Strong Strategic Direction
AI awareness in the region is already high. Sixty-four percent of MENA respondents say they are “very familiar and involved” in how AI is used for marketing and customer experience initiatives. The remaining 36 percent report being somewhat involved with some familiarity.
Strategically, 60 percent of MENA organizations fall into the top two categories describing their AI roadmap—indicating either a defined partial vision or a strong vision with leadership buy-in. However, 40 percent still operate in early-stage or siloed pilots, suggesting that alignment remains uneven across the region.
Automation, Analytics and Media Lead the Agenda
When asked where AI has clear and measurable goals, MENA marketers point first to automation.
63 percent aim to automate marketing processes.
61 percent want to increase the value of data analytics and generate transformational insights.
57 percent focus on increasing media productivity.
Other priorities include improving operational efficiency and margins (55 percent), improving targeting (55 percent), and increasing agility and speed to market (53 percent). Fifty percent cite improving customer experience, while 47 percent aim to personalize the customer journey.
The most visible progress is happening in advertising, media planning and marketing, followed by strategy and planning, and operations.
Where the Resources Go
Spending patterns mirror these priorities. In MENA, 29 percent of marketing and customer experience effort and resources are allocated to operations, with another 29 percent directed to strategy and planning.
Production accounts for 15 percent, activation and personalization 16 percent, measurement 15 percent, and customer service support 10 percent.
The distribution suggests that AI is being embedded into core marketing infrastructure rather than limited to surface-level applications.
Measuring Impact: Efficiency and Effectiveness
Measurement is gaining traction. Fifty-five percent of MENA organizations measure AI’s impact in advertising, media planning and marketing. Forty percent measure impact in operations, 38 percent in sales, and 29 percent in strategy and planning. Still, 12 percent say they do not yet measure AI’s impact.
The most common measurement approaches in MENA are tied:
50 percent track reductions in time spent on specific tasks.
50 percent cite improvements in marketing effectiveness such as ROI or ROAS.
50 percent monitor the shift from manual to automated tasks.
Thirty-six percent attribute incremental revenue to AI, 32 percent report reduced customer acquisition costs, and 21 percent measure improvements in customer satisfaction or Net Promoter Score.
Leadership Urgency, Cultural Readiness
Leadership support appears solid. Seventy-one percent of MENA respondents describe leadership as prioritizing AI with a roadmap and significant investment. Sixty percent say senior leadership feels urgency around adopting or expanding AI in marketing and customer experience.
Culturally, 81 percent say their organization is knowledgeable and accepting of AI adoption.
Concerns: Training, Compliance and Role Disruption
Despite progress, employee concerns remain pronounced. Sixty-nine percent cite the need for additional training to upskill and reskill employees. Thirty-eight percent point to overall uncertainty and unpredictability. Thirty-three percent worry some roles may become obsolete, while 31 percent cite regulatory compliance concerns. Twenty-one percent highlight high implementation costs and unproven business cases.
On governance, 52 percent of MENA organizations report clearly defined rules and processes for sharing AI knowledge and best practices. The remaining 48 percent acknowledge inconsistencies or lack of clarity.
Upskilling Over Hiring
Training maturity remains mixed. Forty-eight percent say AI training exists but is not customized to each capability. Twenty-four percent report limited training, 14 percent say no training is being developed, and 14 percent describe a fully developed, strategy-aligned AI training framework.
Looking ahead 12 to 18 months, 86 percent of MENA organizations plan to prioritize upskilling existing employees in AI-related capabilities. Only 24 percent expect to prioritize hiring new AI talent.
