WPP has shared plans to plunge hundreds of millions into artificial intelligence this year
The firm told investors that it planned to spend £250 million on AI this year. It said it would build on its partnership with Adobe, Google, IBM, Microsoft, Nividia and OpenAI to help push the development.
The group also aims to make £175m of gross savings by identifying efficiency opportunities in both back office and commercial delivery, with 40% to 50% of that set to be achieved in 2024.
WPP expects to up its headline profit margins to between 15.5 and 16% this year, up from its previous target of 14.8%.
It also plans to grow its top line by between 3% and 4% in the medium term.
It follows rival Publicis Groupe’ announcement last week that it will invest £256 million into artificial intelligence over the next three years.
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WPP also said it plans to build on the creation of mega agencies VML and Burson, alongside Ogilvy, Hogarth and Group M to act as a leader across the creative and comms fields.
WPP CEO Mark Read said that while the firm had to navigate a “more challenging environment” in 2023, he predicted “strong future demand”.
He added: “The past three years have demonstrated the power of brands, creativity and investment in marketing to drive growth for clients and build significant value. Research demonstrates that those companies with the strongest brands deliver the highest returns to shareholders.”
He added: “AI is transforming our industry and we see it as an opportunity, not a threat. We firmly believe that AI will enhance, not replace, human creativity.”
“We are already empowering our people with AI based tools to augment their skills, produce work more efficiently and improve media performance.”
