2026年机构AI应用报告：运营者认知与买家预期

What Operators Believe,What Buyers Expect 2026 SURVEY &MARKET INSIGHTS EXECUTIVE SUMMARY Over the past two years, AI has moved from experimentation to infrastructureacross the marketing and creative industries. But the pace of that shift is beingwidely underestimated. What many still describe as a productivity aid is rapidlybecoming a structural force that is reshaping how agencies deploy talent, pricework, protect margins, and scale expertise. In my view,AI is not evolvingincrementally. It is resetting the market at a speed I have not seen in morethan twenty-five years. In conversations across agencies, investors, and strategic buyers, one pattern hasbecome clear:there is a growing disconnect between perception and reality.Many operators believe they are making solid progress with AI. In practice, thegap between leaders and laggards is widening, not narrowing. The accelerationunderway is so dynamic, and so fast-moving, that much of the market has not yetfully internalized what is coming or what it will mean for their business models. THIS REPORTSURFACES FIVETHEMES THATDEFINETODAY’S AIMATURITY GAP.ITS PURPOSE ISTO CLARIFYWHERE THEBUYER BARACTUALLY SITSAND HOWAGENCYLEADERS CANCLOSE THE GAPWITH FOCUSAND URGENCY. A prevailing narrative suggests AI will remain a “helper”: a useful companion thatsupports human creativity but does not fundamentally change how agenciesoperate. I strongly disagree. AI can and should amplify creativity. But stoppingthere misses the point.AI is already moving from assistance into execution,and when embedded into workflows and operating models, it enablescreativity to be delivered faster, leaner, and at scale. It is not just a tool aroundthe work. It is becoming part of how the work gets done, with real consequencesfor how work is produced, how teams are structured, and how value is createdand defended. To understand where the market truly stands, Evros Group conductedparallelsurveys of independent agency leaders and private equity investors andstrategic buyers.The contrast between the two survey groups is striking. Agencyleaders often see AI as an emerging capability still being tested, while buyerstreat adoption as a given and evaluate how deeply it is embedded into theoperating model. To agency leaders navigating this moment,my belief is simple: the opportunityis still real, but it will not remain open indefinitely. Firms that treat AI as anoperating shift, not a side experiment, will define the next era of independentagencies.Thosethat wait will find the market has already moved on. Best regards, AndreasRoellCEO, Evros Group CONTENTS I N T R O D U C T I O N . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .0 4T H E M E 1H I G H M O T I V A T I O N , L O W R E A L I Z A T I O N . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .0 5T H E M E 2T A L E N T , T I M E & C H A N G E A R E T H E C H O K E P O I N T S . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .0 8T H E M E 3W H A T A G E N C I E S U S E A I F O R V S W H A T B U Y E R S R E W A R D . . . . . . . . .1 0T H E M E 4B O T H S I D E S E X P E C T H I G H D I S R U P T I O N . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .1 3T H E M E 5T H E O P E R A T I N G M O D E L I S N O W T H E P R O D U C T . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .1 5S Y N T H E S I SW H A T T H E D A T A M E A N S F O R T H E I N D U S T R Y . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .1 7T H E R O A D M A P F O R A G E N C I E S & C L O S I N G T H O U G H T S . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .1 8A B O U T E V R O S G R O U P . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .2 1 INTRODUCTION H O W TH I S R E S E AR C H WAS C O N D U C TE D This report is grounded in two original surveys conducted in parallel during Q4 of 2025: Survey 1: Independent AgenciesThis survey captured responses from leaders at independent agencies spanning marketing, creative, media, data, analytics, and consulting disciplines. Respondents represented a range of agency sizes,with a concentration in the small to mid-sized independent segment that frequently engages withprivate equity and strategic buyers. Participants included founders, partners, and senior operatorsresponsible for strategy, delivery, and investment readiness. Survey 2: Private Equity Investors and BuyersThe second survey gathered perspectives from private equity firms and strategic buyers actively investing in, acquiring, or operating agency platforms. These respondents evaluate agenciesregularly through diligence processes and portfolio management, offering a direct view into how AImaturity is assessed, priced, and operationalized post-acquisition. Together, the surveys provide a dual-lens view: how agencies assess their own A