The APMA is launching a dedicated AI Taskforce to ensure the affiliate and partner marketing channel remains visible, fairly valued and properly represented as artificial intelligence reshapes digital discovery and decision-making.
The taskforce will include two leading authorities on AI in the affiliate channel: James Bentley and Alex Springer.
James, who will chair the taskforce, leads AI strategy at Awin and works with teams across the business to advance research and development in artificial intelligence and machine learning. Alex is Senior Director of AI Strategy and Partnerships at impact.com, as well as Director of OpenAttribution, a coalition of publishers, brands and technology providers working to establish attribution standards for AI content usage.
The APMA welcomes James and Alex alongside representatives from other member companies including Acceleration Partners, CJ, Revlifter and Adtraction.
Establishing a roadmap
In November 2025, APMA members gathered to agree on project priorities for 2026. AI was identified as a core focus, and a dedicated taskforce has been created to agree its own AI roadmap during the year.
Purpose
Ensure the affiliate and partner marketing channel remains visible, fairly valued and responsibly represented in AI-driven discovery, search and decision-making environments.
2026 focus areas
- Understanding and responding to zero-click and AI-mediated customer journeys
- Measuring non-click influence and assisted value in AI discovery
- Protecting publisher visibility, brand integrity and content quality
- Addressing the risk of AI platforms becoming dominant intermediaries
- Advertiser education on AI-driven influence beyond traditional attribution
- Responsible use of AI-generated content within the channel
- Representation of affiliate marketing in AI policy and regulatory discussions
Recommendations from the workshop
- Develop an AI-era attribution framework that captures influence, exposure and assistance without requiring a click
- Commission independent research into brand visibility within AI-generated responses and the role of publisher partnerships in AI prominence
- Publish responsible AI publisher standards covering accuracy, disclosure, brand governance and content integrity
- Run zero-click attribution pilots with networks, publishers and advertisers to test alternative measurement approaches
- Establish collaboration channels with AI platforms to seek transparency, partnership and fair representation of the channel
- Launch regular AI briefings to keep members informed on tools, risks, opportunities and regulatory developments
- Appoint an independent AI expert advisor to support education, strategy and policy engagement
- Track AI adoption, readiness and impact through the APMA State of the Nation report on an annual basis
AI is no longer a peripheral technology. It is actively changing how consumers find information, compare options and choose brands. Search is being compressed into summaries, and recommendations are increasingly generated inside AI systems rather than across publisher websites.
The commercial challenges to the channel are real but so are the opportunities.
This cautious optimism is born out by APMA data. In the APMA’s Voice of the Affiliate Nation, 44% of brands, agencies and publishers viewed AI as an opportunity, with only 9% seeing it primarily as a threat.
