Key Highlights
India is positioned as a leading exporter of AI chatbots and digital agencies.
Meta CMO Alex Schultz emphasizes India’s mobile-first economy and rapid digital infrastructure growth.
AI is reshaping marketing with automation, chatbots, and creative innovation.
WhatsApp updates tab is emerging as the world’s largest content creation platform.
Schultz’s new book on digital marketing is to be released on October 7, 2025.
India’s Growing Role in AI and Digital Economy
India is rapidly becoming one of the most important markets for Meta, driven by a fast-growing digital economy and a rising adoption of artificial intelligence. Meta’s Chief Marketing Officer Alex Schultz, who recently visited India, highlighted the country’s potential to become a leading global exporter of AI technology, particularly in the fields of AI chatbots for businesses and AI-first digital agencies.
During his trip to Goa and Mumbai, Schultz met with more than 100 CXOs, creators, and small business owners, immersing himself in India’s digital ecosystem. He described India as not only Meta’s largest market across Facebook, Instagram, WhatsApp, and Meta AI—with over one billion monthly active users—but also a country that has achieved the right balance between regulation, consumer protection, and business innovation.
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Three Key Takeaways from Schultz’s India Visit
Schultz outlined three major insights from his India trip: excitement about growth, quick deliveries, and infrastructure expansion.
He observed that Indian business leaders, unlike their European counterparts, are highly optimistic about growth opportunities. CXOs in India are not just focused on domestic expansion but also on exporting services such as AI chatbots, AI agents, and digital agencies worldwide.
The second highlight was India’s quick delivery culture, especially the trend of 10-minute deliveries, which Schultz believes could soon expand globally. He noted that India has historically pioneered digital adoption trends, such as shifting to mobile-first internet use before most countries.
Lastly, Schultz emphasized the scale of India’s digital and physical infrastructure build-out over the past decade. He admitted that while he expected significant development, the scale was even larger than he had imagined.
Marketing Trends in India vs Global Markets
When comparing marketing in India to regions like the United States and Europe, Schultz pointed out that India leads in several aspects. With one of the highest numbers of mobile users and small businesses, India is at the forefront of digital adoption.
Interestingly, India is one of the few markets where television advertising continues to grow in total spending, even as the country expands its digital ad base. Schultz believes this indicates the advertising industry in India could expand at a much faster pace than in mature economies.
India is also recognized as the most advanced market in business messaging, alongside Brazil. Schultz revealed that many AI chatbots developed in India are already being exported internationally, cementing India’s position as a hub for AI-driven business solutions.
AI’s Impact on the Future of Marketing
Artificial intelligence is already transforming marketing, Schultz explained. The first major shift is in media buying, where most advertising budgets are now handled through fully automated campaigns. Earlier, marketers were hesitant to hand over control, but today, platforms like Meta and Google dominate this space.
AI is also reducing tedious manual work, such as producing multiple variations of ad creatives. Beyond efficiency, AI is enabling solutions that were previously not feasible due to cost. For example, Meta now offers AI-powered chat support in the United States to help users recover lost accounts—a service that was prohibitively expensive earlier but is now scalable.
Schultz added that AI is responsible for driving new content discovery on platforms. Unlike six years ago, when users primarily saw content from their direct connections, today most of the time on Facebook and Instagram is spent consuming content from accounts users do not follow—an AI-driven shift.
However, he emphasized that creativity remains the ultimate differentiator in marketing. While AI enhances efficiency, human creativity continues to drive spontaneous and impactful campaigns.
WhatsApp Ads and Monetisation Strategy
Speaking on WhatsApp’s monetisation model, Schultz clarified that the focus is on the updates tab, not user inboxes. The updates tab, which functions like Stories, provides a new avenue for ads and significantly increases ad inventory.
Surprisingly, Schultz highlighted that WhatsApp is now the largest platform for content creation globally, surpassing even Instagram and Facebook in terms of publishing scale. This makes it a critical part of Meta’s marketing and advertising strategy.
AI Tools at Meta and Engineering Innovation
Internally, Meta relies heavily on AI for automated ad buying through tools like Advantage+ shopping campaigns on Facebook and Instagram. Beyond marketing, Schultz noted that AI is also accelerating engineering processes.
He shared that AI allows skilled engineers to become “10x engineers” by speeding up complex tasks such as large-scale code migrations. This efficiency boost is reshaping how Meta handles technical projects at scale.
The Future of Marketing with AR/VR and AI Glasses
As Meta continues to expand into AI glasses and AR/VR devices, Schultz believes the fundamentals of marketing remain constant. The need for entertaining, creative, and engaging content persists across platforms.
Devices like AR glasses, however, open new possibilities by offering first-person perspectives, revolutionizing how social media campaigns are executed. Schultz cited a campaign with CEO Mark Zuckerberg—where he was virtually set on fire—that became a viral success.
Working with Mark Zuckerberg
Schultz described Mark Zuckerberg as a hands-on CEO and an exceptional learner. Unlike many leaders, Zuckerberg prefers listening carefully before giving feedback. Schultz shared that during Meta’s rebranding exercise in 2021, Zuckerberg engaged deeply with global agencies, asking sharp questions that helped shape the strategy.
This approach, Schultz explained, makes Zuckerberg’s feedback highly effective and sets him apart from other executives.
New Book on Digital Marketing
Alex Schultz is also set to release a new book on digital marketing and advertising on October 7, 2025. He believes the book will serve as a foundational guide for businesses transitioning from survival-focused operations to growth-oriented strategies.
The book will cover all modern digital channels, including search, social, partnership ads, and product-led growth, while also exploring the role of AI in shaping the future of marketing. Schultz emphasized that advertising in India, in particular, is poised to expand rapidly as disposable incomes rise and businesses increase marketing investments.
Conclusion
India has emerged as one of the most dynamic digital markets globally, with Meta viewing it as a central hub for growth and innovation. From pioneering quick deliveries to exporting AI-powered business solutions, the country is well on its way to becoming a global leader in artificial intelligence and digital marketing services.
Schultz’s insights not only highlight India’s transformation but also reflect the evolving role of AI in reshaping the future of advertising worldwide. With Meta placing big bets on AI, messaging platforms, and AR/VR, India is expected to play a defining role in the next phase of digital growth.
