AA/WARC Adspend Q2, 2026 & Q4 forecast: industry reactions
Excerpt from Mediashotz' AA/WARC Adspend Q2, 2026 & Q4 forecast: industry reactions
UK advertising spend is forecast to hit a record £14bn in the final quarter of 2026, according to the latest AA/WARC Expenditure Report, with retail media, social and addressable TV among the key drivers of growth.
But as festive advertising budgets reach new heights, are brands spending more effectively or simply spending more?
From AI and retail media to creative effectiveness, measurement and the battle for consumer attention, Mediashotz asked industry leaders for their reactions to the latest figures and what they mean for advertisers heading into the crucial Christmas trading period.
James Macdonald, Co-Founder & CRO, Limelight Inc:
“It’s significant that WARC is now pointing to AI investment as one of the factors supporting growth in the UK advertising market.
“But greater automation doesn’t automatically mean greater efficiency. If the strategy, data or underlying supply paths aren’t right, AI can simply scale the wrong decisions faster.
“AI is most valuable when it takes manual work away from teams and gives them more time to focus on strategy, performance and outcomes. Human judgement still matters in deciding where technology is used, what it is being asked to achieve and when to change course.
“As investment grows, the strongest teams will use AI to support better decisions, not hand those decisions over entirely.”
