As we begin the New Year, we spoke to industry leaders to reflect on the shifts that shaped 2025 and the forces expected to define 2026. For Rubeena Singh, MD India, NP Digital, 2025 marked the moment when AI moved from the margins to the very core of how modern marketing operates.
Reflecting on the year gone by, Singh believes 2025 decisively changed how brands approached execution, efficiency and outcomes.
“2025 was when AI stopped being a nice-to-have and became the engine room of marketing. We saw brands shift in execution led tasks from manual to systems that learn and improve on their own and focus more on strategic inputs. The difference? Teams using AI-led optimisation moved faster, spent smarter and got far more predictable results. It was not about working harder but it was about working with intelligence baked in.”
Looking ahead, Singh sees 2026 as a year where AI not only powers marketing systems, but fundamentally reshapes discovery, personalisation and commerce itself.
“As we look ahead to 2026 we see three fundamental shifts that will redefine how brands connect with consumers:
Trend 1: Generative Engine Optimisation (GEO)
Search is no longer just about blue links. In 2026 discovery will happen even more than ever through AI systems that summarise and interpret information. This makes Generative Engine Optimisation (GEO) essential. Brands will need clear authority and structured content that machines can confidently cite. SEO does not disappear but it expands significantly. Brands that adapt their content structures early will control visibility across both traditional search engines and new AI interfaces.
Trend 2: Privacy-First Personalisation
Privacy is now the constraint that drives innovation. As third-party cookies vanish, brands must use AI to deliver hyper-personalisation without being intrusive. 2026 will see the rise of systems where AI predicts user needs based on broad signals rather than tracking personal history. It is a shift from tracking individuals to understanding intent. This builds trust while maintaining the relevance that performance marketing requires.
Trend 3: Conversational Commerce
The interface of shopping is fundamentally changing. Conversational commerce powered by voice and visual search will dominate 2026. Brands will need to create and optimise for voice and visual search. As that happens trust will become a stronger purchase trigger, with UGC reviews and community validation playing a bigger role than brand-led messaging. Brands must optimise assets across formats and platforms to be discoverable by eyes and ears and validated by peers.”
(As told to Ruchika Jha)
