With more power and influence comes more scrutiny. Marketing leaders said that demonstrating impact on financial outcomes is their primary challenge. And in the last two years, marketers have seen at least a 10% increase on the pressure coming from CEOs (61% opposed to 51% in 2023) and CFOs (63% opposed to 52% in 2023). The study reveals that marketing leaders find their traditional emphasis on defending market position and investing in talent and capabilities is at odds with traditional C-suite objectives of innovation, growth and profitability.

But CMOs are getting more done through the use of AI, which the survey found powers 17.2% of all marketing efforts—a 100% increase from 2022. Such integration is expected to increase to 44.2% within three years. Generative AI for all uses has also surged 116% in the last year, and the technology is now used in over 15.1% of all marketing activities. Survey respondents say AI has led to an 8.6% improvement in sales productivity, 8.5% increase in customer satisfaction and a 10.8% reduction in costs. 

The AI boom—which is coming somewhat late to the marketing world—is well-timed, as 43.5% of leaders reported that overall marketing spending is down, and nearly half said they are less optimistic about the U.S. economy than they were last quarter. The study showed that overall marketing budgets are still slowly increasing, but rates are lower—3.3% higher over the last 12 months. As tariffs, inflation and an overall economic slowdown roil consumer spending and marketing spend grows at a snail’s pace, AI could prove a good assistant to ensure that brands and messages are still able to stay top of mind for consumers.

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This change in perception is likely already impacting the economy, and it could be felt more acutely in the coming months. Canadians were the top international visitors to the U.S. last year, with 20.4 million people spending $20.5 billion here. But it isn’t just Canadians who are now staying away. The number of international visitors in March was down 14% year-over-year, Kelleher writes. There were 17% fewer visitors from Western Europe—after the U.K. and Germany put out travel warnings about potential border detentions for tourists. Every region of the world saw fewer people visiting the U.S. last month, except for the Middle East, which increased by more than a fifth, and Eastern Europe, which posted a slight increase.

While fewer international visitors are coming to the U.S., domestic travelers are also planning to stay home. Fears of a recession are causing many people to cut back on their travel plans. With fewer summertime flights being booked, Southwest Airlines CEO Bob Jordan has said that the airline sector is already in a recession, writes Forbes senior contributor Alex Ledsom. Other major airlines have pulled their guidance for the year in the wake of softening demand—and the possibility of deeper and more prolonged economic pain. Last week, American Airlines was the latest to withdraw its guidance for the year, Kelleher wrote. “We’re taking a very cautious, even a negative, approach to growth as we take a look out to the rest of the year,” CEO Robert Isom said on the earnings call.

The board issued decisions for 11 different cases that deal with gender identity, apartheid, anti-immigrant speech, riots, and speech against people with disabilities. They wrote that Meta needs to live up to its public commitment to uphold the UN Guiding Principles on Business and Human Rights, and assess how its policies are impacting LGBTQ individuals, as well as minors, racial minorities and immigrants.

Meta’s policy change was controversial from the start, explicitly saying that “allegations of mental illness or abnormality when based on gender or sexual orientation, given political and religious discourse about transgenderism and homosexuality” would be allowed. The policy mirrors the community-based “fact checking” on Elon Musk’s X—which has seen its user engagement numbers drop and political polarization skyrocket after the centibillionaire bought the platform in 2022. Analysts said Meta CEO Mark Zuckerberg made the change to appease then-incoming President Trump, who has railed against moderation of hateful, inciting and false speech on social media platforms. Meta told Forbes it will respond to the recommendations within 60 days.

A new way to bring an artist’s vibe to AI music creation—without treading on their copyright—is also getting attention this week. Jen, which is headed by music tech veteran Shara Senderoff and advised by Grammy winner Imogen Heap, launched StyleFilters to allow users to bring a particular artist’s style to their AI-created music, writes Forbes senior contributor David Bloom. StyleFilters lets Jen users choose artists’ songs and the level of influence they want it to have in their creation. The artists who license their songs receive 70% of the resulting revenues.

Being a great leader means continuing to work on yourself through professional development and training. Here’s why leadership training is never complete, and should be seen as a power move.