Will AI hold your beer so you can focus on proper marketing?

There was a lot to take in. I reckon I’m a fairly tuned-in marketer, but things are progressing at a rate of knots. Smart Bidding Exploration. Generative AI that creates full campaigns in seconds. Agentic systems that don’t just recommend, but act. A suite of tools designed to automate bidding, asset creation, campaign structuring and even measurement (still waiting for one to block cold outreach emails though). The promise? You do less, AI does more, and performance climbs. Apparently, marketers using AI see 60% more revenue growth (that’s from BCG, so it must be true *silly face*).

Some of it really was impressive. Genuinely. Which is probably why I needed a pint after.

I left the building and did what any marketer would do in Dublin with a head full of product demos and a belly full of future thinking. I went to Temple Bar. Alone. And ordered a Guinness. One turned into five. Each pint brought with it a new revelation.

[Editor’s note: Andrew emailed me this at 1am. Large parts of it made sense. I managed to scrape together the below.]

Pint one: I don’t know whether to laugh or cry

Some of these tools are properly clever. Genuinely brain-melting in parts. Smart Bidding Exploration. Generative asset creation. Campaign automation. Makes your job easier. Much easier. But what’s a silly little human marketer’s role in all this? Especially when bits of it feel like we’re now committed to following people around the internet.

Like the bit where AI can spot intent signals before you even know you want something. Minority Report but with banner ads. Sold to before you even realise you’re buying.

Just as I polished off pint one, Orlando Wood called me. We chatted while I fingered a bag of pork scratchings and told him about Google’s new AI superpowers. He called it “salesmanship on steroids.”

I told him he was being too harsh, while choking on what I presume was a pig’s nipple. But he had a point. At its best, this stuff gives us space to think. To plan. To build actual creative. But at its worst...

Pint two: Smart bidding, dumb thinking

These tools are designed to automate the doing. Which is brilliant. Until it’s not. If AI handles targeting, creative and bid management, where exactly are you adding value?

The danger is marketers forget to think. They stop writing proper briefs. They let the tools lead strategy. You save time, yes. But what are you doing with it?

No algorithm will tell you what your brand should mean. Or who you should matter to. Or what truth you’re unlocking. AI might be learning fast, but it can’t build your brand’s soul. Assume the platform does the heavy lifting, and you’ll end up with a campaign without a point.

Pint three: Agentic is a silly word

Let’s talk about everyone’s new favourite jargon: “agentic advertising.” Remember when you could go weeks in marketing without hearing “agentic”?

No one really knows what it means. Google (the search engine, not the conference) defines it as giving AI the ability to act on your behalf. Helpful little bots building your media plan while you crack on with... well, whatever else it is we do.

In theory, amazing. If paired with creative direction and strategic thinking, it could free us up to focus on the good stuff. Less time on Gantt charts. Perhaps more time making work that doesn’t make people want to claw their eyes out. Ah, the AI dream. Time for pint four.

Pint four: AI is a mirror and some marketers won’t like what they see

We’ve cracked AI for marketing efficiency. So now it’s exposing marketers who aren’t effective.

If your entire shtick is tweaking CTRs and building rational campaigns... AI can do all that. Better. Faster. Cheaper. Google proved that this week.

The playing field is levelling. Even small brands can now make big-feel creative in weeks. (Seriously, check out Google’s “Veo 3”). If you were doing average work, you’re not even average any more.

The only unfair advantages left? Proper creativity. Real strategy. Emotional intelligence. The stuff that can’t be templated.

I’m writing this in the corner of a pub, fag hanging from my mouth, and it genuinely feels like I’m back in the 90s doing something difficult. My editor is going to have to scrub this clean. But it needs saying.

Pint five: A Slane chaser. And a proper realisation.

My last pint came with a whiskey. Slane Irish triple cask, rested to perfection. (I used to work for them, but it really is good stuff.)

As the warmth spread and I started thinking I should probably call my ex, I realised the biggest point of the day: if AI gives marketers time back... what are we going to do with it?

I worry most won’t use it to build better ideas. They’ll find new spreadsheets. Tinker with dashboards. Dive into engagement data that still doesn’t link to sales.

We’re addicted to busyness. AI offers freedom, this is our chance.

So here’s the challenge: if AI’s going to hold our beer, we better use both hands to do something meaningful. Write smarter briefs. Build emotional platforms. Fight harder for creative that entertains and builds memorability. Proper diagnosis and strategy.

This shift isn’t coming. It’s here. Google (and others I’ve not bothered to read into yet) have pulled their finger out. I’ll get booed for writing this, but it’s time to stop pretending this isn’t a big shift. Adopt the tech. Double down on what humans do best. Or get automated out of relevance.

Kebab time. This was weirdly relaxing. Might be what journaling feels like. Hope my mum doesn’t read this. She’ll know I’m a drunk.