Alipay has unveiled exciting new features for its "Alipay Fire" digital advertising platform, incorporating AI-Generated Content (AIGC) capabilities that empower merchants to craft their advertising materials using artificial intelligence. The launch of an AI Ad Assistant will offer advertisers tailored campaign recommendations, improving advertising efficiency for businesses by at least 27%.
The advertising division of Alipay was founded in March of last year, and by August, the "Alipay Fire" digital promotion system made its debut, marking a strategic shift towards capitalizing on platform traffic. In the past six months, active advertisers and agencies have seen remarkable growth, with increases of four and nine times, respectively. Zhu Xing, the head of the advertising division, emphasized ongoing efforts to boost traffic access and effectiveness, projecting a 1.5-fold increase in app traffic while focusing on enhancing efficiency, AI applications, and industry-specific solutions.
Liu Zheng, the marketing director of Alipay's advertising division, noted that AIGC is currently leveraged for ad creativity and content distribution, utilizing Ant Group’s proprietary large models for text-to-image and text-to-video conversions. Other leading internet companies, such as JD.com and Tencent, are also heavily investing in AI advertising initiatives. Tencent Ads has introduced the AI creative platform "Miaosi," harnessing its large model to offer diverse creative tools tailored for various applications. Tencent’s CEO, Ma Huateng, recently highlighted in an annual report that advancements in their advertising AI model significantly boost targeting accuracy.
JD.com is harnessing a vast model pool to underpin its AI applications, which include intelligent creative solutions, smart bidding, and automated management. A report from iResearch indicated that by 2023, 48% of advertisers had embraced AIGC technology for online efforts, with over 90% using it for content and creativity, and more than 40% integrating it into information gathering, data analysis, and user management.
As businesses deepen their investment in marketing technology, digital marketing expenditures in China are projected to approach 600 billion yuan by 2025. Research from Guotai Junan suggests that AI is likely to find its first applications in marketing and e-commerce, where the demand for quality content and duration is typically lower. As technology evolves and costs decrease, AI is set to revolutionize professional content creation gradually. Zhang Yi, CEO of iiMedia Research, stated that advertising and marketing could be among the fastest sectors to experience AI commercialization.
Zhang highlighted two vital phases in advertising: the creation of advertising materials and the creative design process. Traditionally, these relied on experienced personnel, but AI now offers the capability to analyze past successes and build a comprehensive knowledge base. The second phase focuses on improving precision, efficiency, and intelligence in advertising. Zhang posits that AI can significantly enhance marketing effectiveness, boosting efficiency by hundreds or even thousands of times compared to conventional tactics. The core objective of advertising is to minimize expenditure while maximizing reach and purchase conversions—a goal where AI can drive substantial optimization.
Looking ahead, Zhang is optimistic about AI's potential to expand the horizons of advertising and marketing through ongoing technological advancements, facilitating greater innovation in products, business models, and related technologies. However, he notes a significant challenge: the shortage of versatile talent in the industry, as many advertising professionals may lack strong technical skills. Moreover, obstacles remain in developing productization strategies and improving customer acceptance alongside the pace of technological advancement.
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