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WORLDWIDE – Threats and Impact of AI on the Event Industry
In March, the BEIC community organized an Event Fest with representatives from 40 countries. From the panel discussion “The Impact of AI on Event Industry Trends,” our partner and panelist Yevhen Shaposhnikov has gathered his own insights from the conversation and is sharing them with you.
The global market for AI in event management is projected to reach $1.5 billion by 2025, indicating rapid adoption and integration into the industry. Furthermore, the broader event industry is forecasted to grow to $1171.3 billion by 2032, with AI playing a pivotal role in streamlining operations and enhancing personalization.
During the panel discussion, Yevhen Shaposhnikov, along with colleagues from Jack Morton Worldwide, KESCH – The Brand Experience Company, Universum Events, and other experts, discussed the role of artificial intelligence in the event industry. Should we worry that AI will soon replace event specialists? Are there any “hidden pitfalls” in its use?
Yevhen Shaposhnikov shares the key insights from the meeting.
Is AI impacting the event industry right now? Absolutely. Technology accelerates, simplifies, and makes processes more efficient. However, events are all about networking, collaboration, and “people for people,” so AI has yet to replace humans in the process chain.
Here are some of Evgen’s and his colleagues’ favorite technologies:
- Note-takers for online meetings and Google Meets.
- Grammarly, which is indispensable for checking texts when working with different markets.
- Colleagues also shared bots for scheduling, email distribution, etc and Grok for analytics and data processing – 55% of event planners use AI to analyze attendee data and improve experiences.
Another area of its impact is content saturation. Let’s be honest: there is content and designs that, at first glance, feel the “plastic touch of AI.” Trust decreases, and as a result, audience engagement suffers. Global trust in AI has fallen from 61% to 53% over five years, with U.S. trust declining from 50% to 35%, according to Edelman’s Trust Barometer.
“We came to the conclusion – AI can create simple concepts, but when true creativity is needed, a human is indispensable,” says Yevhen Shaposhnikov. “AI lacks that ‘human experience’ and perception, so not all ideas generated by Chat GPT can reach the audience’s heart.”
Also, it is important to once again emphasize the risks of AI: and no, it is not a replacement for “human labor” – as many believe. First and foremost, it is deepfakes and fake content – all colleagues confirmed that they regularly have to verify the authenticity of content. Predictions suggest that up to 90% of online content could be synthetically generated by 2026, further complicating trust in digital event platforms.
The second threat: Are NDAs being violated when we hand over client data to AI technologies for processing? We believe they are, primarily from a legal perspective: training AI on client data without consent, the likelihood of data leaks from third-party vendors remains and could lead to unpleasant consequences.
The conclusion of this discussion from event professionals: the impact of AI is noticeable, but it has not yet become a game-changer in the event industry. The meeting with colleagues was rich in thoughts and discussions, and the opportunity to form a community, share experiences, and challenges is only developing the event industry.