Artificial intelligence can now complete many creative and communications tasks in minutes, but that capability alone does not make a brand stronger. For Hungarian small and medium-sized enterprises (SMEs), the crucial question is what to delegate to machines and what to keep as human decisions. Experts argue that AI creates meaningful value only when it is built on clearly defined brand foundations.
Mistakes matter: beyond a funny typo
A concrete example is a Budapest shop window that displayed the AI-generated caption “Fehéeéééoi szotyi” instead of the intended “Fehértói szotyi.” Such errors no longer appear only on social media; they show up on posters, menus and storefronts as well. What may seem like a humorous AI glitch can affect how customers perceive a business just as much as its logo, store layout or the way staff communicate.
Public surveys: audiences are cautious about fully AI-produced content
International research indicates audiences are less comfortable with content entirely produced by AI. The Reuters Institute’s 2025 study across six countries found only 12 percent of respondents would be comfortable with news completely generated by AI; acceptance rose substantially when humans were involved, and reached 62 percent for entirely human-produced news. The Ipsos 2025 U.S. survey shows a similar pattern: roughly three-quarters of respondents preferred humans to produce news and entertainment content, and about two-thirds favored human creators for marketing and artistic content.
These studies were not conducted in Hungary and did not focus on advertising, but they highlight that audiences perceive background AI use differently from full automation of content creation.
Slower AI adoption in Hungary
According to European Commission data, in 2025 only 7.4 percent of Hungarian enterprises used AI technologies, compared with a 13.9 percent EU average. This suggests lower current corporate AI uptake in Hungary, though more domestic firms are likely to integrate AI into everyday operations in the coming period.
The risk of "AI slop" and loss of distinctiveness
A growing flood of AI-generated images and texts with little unique thought or context has been labeled "AI slop." The central problem is not necessarily whether audiences can tell something was made by AI, but that similar prompts and tools often produce similar outcomes. Small businesses’ advantage often lies in looking and sounding different — a distinctive owner story or personal presence — which can be undermined by generic AI content.
Expert view: order matters
Serfőző Péter, brand strategist, founder and CEO of zwoelf agency and co-founder of brandguide/AI, says many Hungarian companies adopted AI tools in the wrong sequence. The issue is not the technology itself, but commissioning content from AI before clearly defining the brand. "AI’s output can only be as accurate as the input we give it. Without brand foundations, we risk not building a brand but adding more noise," he said.
He emphasized that for small businesses the owner, the story and personal presence are often the strongest differentiators. Replacing these with generic AI-generated content risks eroding the very qualities that separate a company from competitors.
Lessons from global brands: missteps and new roles for AI
International cases show even major brands have stumbled when applying AI poorly. Examples mentioned in the reporting include:
- McDonald’s Netherlands published a fully generative AI Christmas ad in December 2025 that was removed three days later following online criticism.
- Guess used AI-generated models in a 2025 Vogue advertisement, sparking debate about the impact of artificial models on the creative industries.
- Coca-Cola used generative AI in its 2024 and 2025 Christmas campaigns; both received significant criticism and the 2025 effort drew boycott calls.
At the same time, large brands have not abandoned AI; they are redefining its role. In May 2025, Coca-Cola and Adobe introduced Project Fizzion, an AI-based design system intended not to replace designers but to learn from design decisions and help consistently apply brand rules across platforms and markets. Fizzion records typographic and layout decisions made by designers and uses them in machine-readable form to support future creative work.
Human-authored content as a differentiator
Some brands are making human origin an explicit claim. Aerie extended its long-standing anti-retouching policy in 2026 and pledged not to use AI-generated people or bodies in advertising; the brand reported 23 percent comparable sales growth in the fourth quarter of 2025. On the publishing side, the Authors Guild launched a "Human Authored" label in 2025, which was opened to all U.S. book authors in 2026.
These examples do not establish direct causation, but they show that human origin can itself become a communications asset.
How SMEs should use AI effectively
Experts recommend that Hungarian SMEs first clarify the brand’s foundations: purpose, values, target audiences and points of differentiation. Only then should they deploy AI tools so those tools operate from accurate, brand-aligned inputs.
Models like Serfőző’s Brandspirál start brand building with fundamental questions rather than logos or color palettes. When those fundamentals are set, AI can produce more precise, brand-appropriate outcomes.
In practice, AI can serve as a thinking partner and a background tool: organizing information, comparing options, generating multiple variants, or checking whether new text or creative complies with pre-established rules. Final decisions about voice and brand face, however, remain human responsibilities.
The evolving role of creative professionals
AI makes simple illustrations, presentations, layouts and copy variations possible in minutes — tasks that once took more time or required multiple specialists. This does not render designers, communicators or consultants redundant. Rather, it elevates skills that are harder to automate: taste, experience, contextual judgment and the ability to judge whether an idea truly fits a brand. AI can speed up and standardize processes, but if left to invent a company’s personality it tends toward the same images, phrases and solutions many others use.
As Serfőző Péter put it: "Hungarian small businesses naturally have an advantage: a real face, story and signature. It would be a shame to replace that with an AI template that looks like everyone else's."
Conclusion
AI is here to stay, and more companies will incorporate it into their operations. The key to successful application is sequence: define brand foundations first, then use AI to make brand execution faster, more consistent and more efficient — without erasing the human elements that distinguish smaller businesses.
