Originally published: B&T, 11 September 2026
Digital advertising has matured, but so have its challenges. More than three decades after the first digital display ad, the industry has evolved into a complex, AI-powered ecosystem where every advertising decision carries greater opportunity and risk, writes Jessica Miles, country manager ANZ at Integral Ad Science.
Over nearly two decades, the click was digital advertising’s most trusted proof point. It was a proxy for a user discovering a brand, engaging with a message, and taking action. Entire frameworks, optimisation strategies, and multi-billion-dollar media budgets were built around that single action.
As AI reshapes how consumers make decisions, the click is no longer the only signal that matters.
Consumers are increasingly discovering brands through AI Overviews, conversational assistants, and AI-generated recommendations. Questions are answered before websites are visited. Products are shortlisted before ads are clicked. In this new landscape, the customer journey is no longer a linear click-through. Increasingly, decisions are being shaped within AI-powered experiences before traditional digital signals ever register.
Australia is already living this shift. The IAB and Pureprofile Commerce Discovery Report 2026 found that six in ten Australian online shoppers now use AI-powered tools when shopping, rising to 75 percent among those 18 to 39. Yet 80 percent still have concerns around accuracy, privacy, trust and most treat AI as one of several sources, checking recommendations against retailer and brand websites before they buy.
Download the full ‘Australia & New Zealand Commerce & Discovery Report’ here >
