Ipsos vs SurveyMonkey

Study: AI Chatbots Becoming Personal Advisors

A representative survey published on August 11, 2026, finds that AI chatbots are increasingly used as personal advisors in Germany. Conducted by Ipsos and the Berufliche Schule für Medien und Kommunikation Hamburg (BMK), the survey reports 57% of Germans use chatbots for private matters and 84% usage among 18–34-year-olds. Around one third of users are comfortable sharing personal information with AI; 25% feel better understood by chatbots than by people and 21% assign chatbots a role similar to close friends. Common use cases include physical health, legal questions, nutrition, finance and mental health. The report also highlights persistent concerns about data protection, impacts on human relationships, and users verifying chatbot answers via additional research.

• Survey by Ipsos and the Berufliche Schule für Medien und Kommunikation Hamburg (BMK) published on 2026-08-11.
• 57% of Germans report using AI chatbots for personal/private concerns.
• 84% of respondents aged 18–34 use chatbots for personal issues.

AB InBev Launches 'Cheers to Beer' Campaign as Sales Rise

AB InBev has launched a global creative campaign titled “Cheers to Beer,” created by Wieden+Kennedy, which presents vignettes of people worldwide toasting with the brewer’s beer portfolio ahead of International Beer Day. The campaign accompanies new research commissioned by AB InBev and conducted by Ipsos and IWSR that shows beer’s share of alcohol servings rose from about 46% in 2019 to more than 50% in 2026. AB InBev CEO Michel Doukeris framed beer’s social role as a driver of recent growth: the company reported sales volumes up 0.8% in Q1 (beer sales up 1.2%) and posted a 5.6% revenue increase with 1.1% beer volume growth in Q2. The article notes Bud Light is not featured in the ad and that its sales have been dwindling.

• AB InBev launched the "Cheers to Beer" global campaign created by Wieden+Kennedy.
• The campaign features AB InBev brands including Budweiser, Corona, Michelob, and Stella Artois.
• Research commissioned by AB InBev and conducted by Ipsos and IWSR found the beer and beyond-beer category grew from ~46% of total alcohol servings in 2019 to over 50% in 2026.

Ipsos 2026: AI Advertising Erodes Consumer Trust

The Ipsos AI Monitor 2026 finds growing consumer skepticism toward AI, particularly when used in advertising. In Germany, three in four respondents say products and services should disclose when they use AI, and more than half report reduced trust in results if generative AI is influenced by advertising. While over half of the population already uses AI tools in daily life, overall confidence in AI outputs is declining and only a small minority fully trust them without verification. Acceptance varies by application: everyday uses (search, ordering) see higher approval, but trust falls sharply for sensitive domains such as health, finance or hiring. The article notes that parts of the EU Commission began requiring transparency in August 2026.

• Ipsos published the Ipsos AI Monitor 2026 survey on public attitudes toward AI.
• Three in four Germans believe products and services must disclose when they are based on AI.
• More than half of German consumers would trust results less if generative AI outputs were influenced by advertising; more than half feel uncomfortable with personalized AI-generated ads.

Brands revive human-staffed phone lines amid AI fatigue

Amid growing consumer frustration with AI customer service, several direct-to-consumer brands like Sproos, Made In, and Trade Coffee are reintroducing human-staffed phone lines as a differentiator. A SurveyMonkey study found that 79% of Americans prefer human interaction over AI agents. These brands report increased customer loyalty and deeper insights into customer journeys through phone conversations. The trend highlights a backlash against over-automation and a strategic move to blend human touch with digital efficiency, with some brands even training staff to provide expert advice and sharing call insights with marketing teams.

• 79% of Americans strongly prefer interacting with a human over an AI agent (SurveyMonkey study).
• Sproos, a DTC showerhead brand, launched a human-staffed phone line on Sundays through Fridays, receiving about 30 calls per day.
• Made In cookware operates an AI chatbot but also maintains a phone line, with staff using FaceTime and Zoom for customer assistance.

EU AI Act Disclosure Rules Shape Customer Service Bot Decisions

This CMSWire article examines how brands should determine when to use AI versus human agents in customer service, citing MIT research showing human-AI combinations often underperform the best human-only or AI-only systems. Consumer studies indicate a strong preference for humans in high-stakes interactions, but acceptance of AI for transactional tasks. The EU AI Act Article 50 transparency obligations, effective August 2, 2026, require clear disclosure when interacting with AI. The article argues that transparency, when done well, builds trust and can expand AI's role over time. It offers a framework based on friction, conditional preference, transparency, and frontline knowledge to guide where AI should handle interactions, emphasizing process redesign over simple task reassignment.

• EU AI Act Article 50 transparency obligations require clear disclosure when interacting with AI, effective August 2, 2026.
• MIT Center for Collective Intelligence reviewed 106 experiments and found human-AI combinations underperformed the best human-only or AI-only systems on average.
• Metrigy's 2025-26 consumer study found 84.7% prefer human agents, but 46% will use AI for specific transactional tasks.

SurveyMonkey announces 40 #1 rankings in G2’s Fall 2026 reports

SurveyMonkey announces 40 #1 rankings in G2’s Fall 2026 reports August 27, 2026