MIT Media Lab recently found that 95% of organizations have seen zero ROI on the AI projects they eagerly announced just a few quarters ago.
Why the mass failure? Harvard Business Review offers one explanation: Employees are using AI to churn out passable-but-poor work, leaving their colleagues to clean up the mess. That cleanup is expensive: an estimated $9 million in lost productivity every year.
And yet, the spending hasn’t slowed. In our research with TikTok, 90% of executives say they’re betting on AI automation for growth. But only 19% have gone beyond experiments to deeply integrate AI into their operations. Those few are reaping outsized rewards—a 97% satisfaction rate compared to just 36% for limited adopters.
So, the good news: you still have time to move into that 19%.
In this edition of NewtonX Current, we break down what separates the leaders from the losers and what it takes to make AI work for you, not against you.
Want to dig into the research yourself? Read our full findings with TikTok.
TL;DR—AI success comes down to continuous innovation, technical expertise, and game-changing creativity.
With TikTok, we dug into how companies get recognized as leaders in AI automation for marketing and advertising. Because, in this space, perception can matter just as much as reality.
Our research points to three drivers of perceived leadership. While the study focused on advertisers, the lessons cut across industries, and they’re worth paying attention to.
Success driver #1: Continuous innovation
Committing to innovation is the strongest marker of AI leadership. The leaders don’t just adopt AI once. They continually test, refine, and expand its role in their business. In the process, they’re measuring how the innovations perform on success metrics that matter to the business, not just individuals, such as cost savings and reduced errors.
TikTok’s report is packed with innovation stories from Ray-Ban, Maybelline, and more.
Success driver #2: Technical expertise
Companies recognized are building AI into their existing systems, rather than spinning up disconnected “tests.” That signals to the market that AI is a core capability, not a scattershot experiment.
Our research suggests this, too: you don’t need all the AI talent in-house. Most leaders lean on a mix of staff, vendors, and partners for that technical expertise.
Success driver #3: Creativity
Leaders are using AI to create things (workflows, products, systems) that the market hasn’t seen before. That kind of creativity converts technical skill into a competitive advantage, because it shows your market what’s possible rather than simply what’s functional.
Creativity is as crucial in B2B research as in filming viral TikToks.
How to become an AI leader
Fully integrating and optimizing AI takes real effort. But that effort is what sets leaders apart and shapes how the market sees you. Here are the moves that matter most:
- Integrate AI into your core operations. Isolated pilots won’t cut it. Build AI into the systems already running your business.
- Leverage partners. You don’t have to start from scratch. Partners like TikTok (and yes, NewtonX!) offer pre-built solutions that help you quickly see ROI.
- Automate across the marketing journey. From creation to measurement, weave AI into every stage. It’s easier said than done, but don’t stop at automating just one piece.
- Invest in future-proofing. This field changes fast. Take demos and test what’s new so you’re always in front.
Happy building. If you’d like help integrating AI into your market research, give us a shout.
— Leon Mishkis, COO at NewtonX
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