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Optimizely has released a global study of more than 2,000 marketing leaders, revealing that while artificial intelligence has become central to modern marketing, the promised productivity gains are being offset by the growing time spent reviewing, editing, and correcting AI-generated content.
The report introduces the concept of a “revision tax,” highlighting that although AI enables marketers to produce more content, many teams are spending significant time fact-checking outputs, correcting inaccuracies, and managing fragmented workflows.
According to the survey, 76% of marketers spend at least three hours each week editing or verifying AI-generated content. Nearly half (48%) identified fact-checking and hallucination reviews as the biggest source of additional work, while 40% cited the challenge of transferring information across disconnected platforms.
The research also reveals that deadline pressures are leading to compromises in content quality. Around 25% of marketers admitted they frequently publish AI-generated content that is not fully aligned with their brand guidelines, while 30% acknowledged presenting AI-generated work as original human-created content. Only 4% of respondents said AI saves time throughout every stage of their workflow, and just 19% currently operate from a unified AI platform.
The study also uncovered a disconnect between executive leadership and operational teams. While 69% of C-suite executives believe AI adoption is fully aligned across their organizations, only 27% of marketing analysts share that view. Additionally, 54% of marketers believe senior leadership underestimates the human effort required to make AI-generated content production-ready.
Creative concerns are also emerging. Nearly 39% of respondents said they spend so much time managing AI workflows that they have less opportunity for strategic thinking, while 46% fear heavy AI reliance could weaken creative skill development among junior marketers. More than half (53%) believe current AI tools struggle to capture the emotional qualities that define a strong brand voice.
Despite widespread AI adoption, 65% of marketers said they would support slowing or adjusting their organization’s AI rollout to strengthen governance, improve workflows, and establish better operational guardrails.
“AI was supposed to give marketers room to think. What most teams got instead was more to manage,” said Tara Corey, Senior Vice President of Marketing at Optimizely. “The corner-cutting, the off-brand content, and the invisible hours are all symptoms of infrastructure that hasn’t kept pace with AI adoption.”
The report concludes that future success with AI will depend less on producing larger volumes of content and more on creating systems that reduce operational complexity while allowing marketers to focus on strategy, creativity, and customer engagement.
