Research Insight | Think Twice Before Marketing AI as "Better than Humans"
The rapid expansion of AI in business is largely driven by its ability to outperform humans in specific tasks. This has encouraged firms to increasingly integrate AI into their operations and, in some cases, to emphasize AI’s superiority over human counterparts in marketing efforts. AI is often portrayed as more efficient, reliable, and consistent than humans. For example, Artisan AI, a San Francisco–based startup, launched a provocative campaign for its autonomous AI worker Ava, using slogans such as “Stop Hiring Humans” and “Hire Artisans, Not Humans” to highlight the advantages of AI employees.
However, emphasizing AI as “better-than-human” carries potential risks. Such messaging can provoke existential concerns, with consumers perceiving AI as a threat to humanity. These perceptions reduce brand evaluations and increase the likelihood of boycotting or negative responses. Consumer reactions are influenced by individual differences in AI-related anxiety: Highly anxious individuals are particularly sensitive to messages portraying AI as superior, while those with lower anxiety show neutral reactions. Given that many consumers experience at least some anxiety about AI, relying on a purely superiority-focused narrative is risky.
To address this challenge, companies can strategically frame AI as highly capable yet limited in scope. Emphasizing that AI is not conscious and that its advantages are task-specific helps reduce fears while still promoting AI’s benefits. This approach mitigates concerns about existential threats, improves consumer perceptions, and even reduces negative online reviews, offering a practical way to balance claims of AI superiority with consumer reassurance.
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What You Need to Know
- Highlighting AI’s superiority in marketing can trigger existential fears about human identity.
- Consumers with AI anxiety react most negatively, which can lower brand trust and increasing boycott intentions.
- Frame AI as task-specific and non-conscious to reassure users when showcasing its superiority.
Abstract
Artificial intelligence (AI) is increasingly praised for its superior performance compared to humans. Some firms now strategically adopt a better-than-human framing to promote their AI products. Across four experimental studies, we investigate consumer responses to this better-than-human framing and identify significant risks associated with the strategy. Specifically, presenting AI through a better-than-human frame can trigger existential concerns, as reminders of AI dominance evoke perceived threats to humanity. Given that many consumers already experience anxiety about AI’s advancement, such better-than-human framing can intensify these fears—particularly among those high in general AI anxiety. However, recognizing that firms may continue to use this approach for strategic purposes, we develop and test an intervention message designed to accompany the better-than-human frame, aiming to mitigate perceived threats to humanity. Our findings provide critical insights for AI marketing and communication, highlighting the need for nuanced messaging that balances AI performance signals with consumer reassurance.
Andrea Weihrauch and Chunya Xie, “Marketing AI Superiority: Risks of Using the ‘Better-Than-Human’ Framing,” Journal of Interactive Marketing. doi:10.1177/10949968251408781