Earlier this year a McKinsey Global Survey found 72% of organizations now use generative AI, with significant growth in marketing. Now, Deloitte is forecasting how the technology will change media outlets in 2025 – from gender adoption to everyday integration.
Deloitte’s Technology, Media & Telecommunications 2025 Predictions report outlines the transformative impact Generative AI is expected to have across industries, including implications for radio broadcasters.
Deloitte reports that by 2025, women’s adoption of GenAI in the US will equal or surpass men’s. This growth reflects increasing comfort and engagement with AI-powered technologies, from virtual assistants to content discovery tools. Stations targeting female demographics can leverage AI to create tailored listening experiences. For example, personalized playlists, AI-driven podcast recommendations, and targeted messaging could deepen engagement.
Deloitte forecasts that by 2025, 25% of enterprises using GenAI will deploy AI agents, rising to 50% by 2027. These agents, designed to execute tasks with minimal human intervention, go beyond the generative AI products that most of us are familiar with – either elevating or removing altogether the prompting stage.
Within the next year, Deloitte expects 30% of smartphones and 50% of PCs shipped will support GenAI functionalities. This increased processing capability will allow devices to handle more localized AI tasks, such as personalizing radio streams or delivering hyper-targeted ads.
Deloitte predicts that the average number of standalone video streaming subscriptions will peak in 2025 as consumers gravitate toward aggregated services. This trend may extend to audio platforms, where audiences demand seamless access to music, podcasts, and radio. Broadcasters can leverage AI to integrate with or even create aggregated platforms, blending live radio, podcasts, and curated music.
Of course, radio has to balance the battle for audience perception and trust in 2025, which may continue to keep AI in the background, used more for operational tasks than on-air roles. A study by Audacy revealed that 75% of US adults are concerned about AI’s potential to spread misinformation. The research indicated that 55% of respondents prefer human voices over AI-generated content, with radio hosts being trusted 2.5 times more than social media influencers for news delivery.
As Deloitte Vice Chair and Technology Sector Leader Steve Fineberg said, “GenAI is poised to revolutionize society, and the decisions we make today will shape the trajectory of innovation, economic prosperity, and societal well-being for the future.”
The full TMT Predictions report is now available.
