The resilience gap: Why corporate reputation in the age of AI demands more than just trust

The useful part

In the current landscape of corporate reputation, the old playbooks are failing. After two decades of falling trust in institutions, government, and companies, AI has accelerated this trend and traditional measurement metrics like "trust" aren't measuring the full impact. Bully Pulpit International's second annual Reputation Resilience Index reveals a sobering reality.

How it works

• every employer is suspected of using technology to replace workers and disempower consumers.
• adults believe companies use AI as an excuse to cut workforces and increase corporate profits.
• In the United States—as well as the United Kingdom, France, and Germany—the most dangerous narratives are those centered on the idea that corporations are using AI as an excuse to cut their workforces and...
• The onset of artificial intelligence is posing two threats to corporate reputation.
• As AI increases the prevalence of misinformation, consumers are more mistrustful than ever, making positive brand stories harder to drive.

What to take from it

Consumers are grappling with a "verification gap," where 81% agree that AI makes it too easy to spread false rumors about companies, and only 15% feel capable of detecting content. In this environment, AI poses significant risks to all brands. In an age of general distrust—in the companies we support, in our government, in the content we see online—AI is raising the stakes.

Details worth keeping

The second challenge is a question of corporate motives.