Investing.com — Small and medium-sized businesses (SMBs) are increasingly pivoting toward AI-integrated search tools, according to a new survey from Morgan Stanley (NYSE: MS) & Co. LLC.
The report highlights a surge in adoption and forward intent for Alphabet Inc. (NASDAQ: GOOGL), specifically through its Search and AI Overviews features, which outperformed rival platforms in both utility and growth.
Meta Platforms (NASDAQ: META) remains a dominant force in the digital ad landscape, but the survey noted a “modest year-over-year softness” in usage, signaling a shift in how smaller advertisers are allocating their budgets toward generative-AI-led discovery tools.
The digital advertising sector is entering a phase of rapid experimentation, with a high percentage of SMBs expressing interest in testing OpenAI’s ChatGPT ad products. The budding interest in generative text and video creation is fundamentally altering the competitive dynamic for legacy social media giants.
Analysts found that businesses are increasingly attracted to the high intent associated with AI-driven search results, which provide more direct pathways to conversion compared to traditional social feeds.
This trend toward automation is also reflected in the rising use of AI-backed creative tools.
As SMBs seek to lower the barrier for high-quality content production, the demand for platforms that offer integrated generative capabilities is expected to grow, potentially redistributing market share among the “Big Tech” advertising incumbents for the remainder of 2026.
The survey results underscore a transition in advertiser sentiment, where the functional performance of AI-enhanced search is beginning to outweigh the broad reach of traditional social media. Google’s AI Overviews have seen particularly strong traction, with respondents citing improved lead quality and relevance.
In contrast, Meta continues to be a core component of local advertising, but the slight decline in its year-over-year growth suggests that some budgets are being redirected toward the emerging high-intent platforms.
The data points to a market where “first-mover” advantages in AI integration are translating into measurable gains in advertiser loyalty.
As the technical capabilities of AI tools continue to evolve, the ability of a platform to maintain its utility for smaller businesses will dictate its long-term revenue resilience in an increasingly automated advertising ecosystem.
