The Future of Marketing: Can AI Revolutionize Product Placement and Influencer Collaboration?

By now, spotting influencers in major ads and at events is all but mainstream — but what if artificial intelligence allowed influencers to tap into old-school product placement without actually having to shoot in person with brands?

Imagine seeing more seamless product placements across movies and TV shows that are story-driven and adaptable, where brands get virtually inserted onto products, backgrounds or signage in post-production. New AI-backed virtual product placement tools, including Mirriad, Ryff, and Inshorts, can add fried chicken to a Stranger Things scene or edit in cans of paint to Lizzo’s music videos without the talent or creators actually featuring those products in the filming. Brands from Hallmark to Univision have been testing this product placement method since 2020.

With these platforms, brands can make product placements far more natural-looking and scalable now — and the hope is this technology can bridge the gap in the world of product placement and simultaneously boost influencer content across channels. For example, Mirriad included its virtual product placement in 2024 TV Upfronts and worked with Cheetos to integrate its ghost pepper chips into Ghostbusters: Frozen Empire last year. South Korean ad company Inshorts last year also applied its AI digital product placement to drama Maestra.

So far, agencies remain divided on these new tools: Some find them promising and are curious about them because of their flexibility. Others remain cautious about costs and other aspects of adopting the tools.

“The biggest opportunity here is the flexibility and quick turnaround it provides,” said Lindsey Lehmann, director of influencer and branded content at PMG.

On the one hand, marketers are already aware of the sway that influencers can have over purchases — for instance, nearly two-thirds of consumers have bought a product after an influencer recommended it online, per creator platform Grin — and perhaps virtual product placements would take this to the next level by making influencer marketing more widely available to all types of creators and brands.

It’s why product placement and influencer company BENlabs (Branded Entertainment Network) is strategically positioning itself in this space specifically, as opposed to pitching itself as an AI company like many of its competitors. Instead, BENlabs wants to focus on three core products: influencer marketing, product placement, and optimization tools — which makes sense, given the company formed in 2016 through acquisitions that combined influencer agency Plaid Social Labs and product placement agency Norm Marshall & Associates.

“What we’re excited about is we think [virtual product placements for brands] can essentially create … a one plus one equals three dynamic,” said CEO Ted Sheffield. “The reality is, 10 years ago traditional TV and YouTube content maybe felt like they were in completely different universes, and those things are coming together.”

Earlier this month, BENlabs inked a partnership with virtual product placement company Mirriad to develop an in-content advertising offering. The virtual integration can be used across brand placements in streaming, movies, and music videos. Along with BENlabs’ access to some 15 million creators and brands like Microsoft, GM, and Frito-Lay, Mirriad also brings a supplier network featuring Univision, Vevo, and Influential (now owned by Publicis).

Yet AI and virtual product placement also faces adoption challenges in marketing. Currently, some brands explicitly forbid generative AI content in their contracts, said Chris Jacks, director of growth strategy at influencer agency HireInfluence. As these tools become more popular, we anticipate more leniency with AI-based tools and services that enhance content.

“We are in an exciting era of content creation, as these types of special effects and content enhancement used to be reserved for high-budget production or required a high degree of technical competency,” Jacks added.

Kelly Dye, VP of influencer strategy at Acorn Influence, noted potential advantages to using AI to boost influencer marketing and product placement, like personalizing content (with audience data), cutting down on the costs of content creation, and producing evergreen content. However, she cautioned that whether these AI and product placement platforms become more mainstream in advertising will ultimately depend on the content performance and ethical or authenticity concerns from brands and creators. Marketers need to avoid overly polished placements and potentially consider upfront costs to implement AI software.

On the upside, some verticals that are more visually-driven, like fashion, beauty, and home, could be more of a natural fit for these technologies. PMG’s Lehmann indicated that there is growing interest in seeing how the tools can impact influencer partnerships and expects this product placement space to grow significantly in 2025. “I see virtual product placement as a natural complement to our paid amplification influencer strategies,” she said, “because it creates an additional opportunity on the organic side by integrating products seamlessly into the creator’s world.”