Aniket PujariMajor tech companies like Microsoft and Google are offering big cheques to social media influencers, hoping to turn them into promoters of their Artificial Intelligence (AI) products and lure more people to try out their services.
This trend can also be witnessed among artificial intelligence players, such as OpenAI, Anthropic and Meta, which have also ramped up hiring social media creators to post sponsored content on platforms like Facebook, Instagram, YouTube and even LinkedIn, CNBC reported.
These promotions don’t come cheap. Some creators can make a fortune, with payouts for influencer collaborations running into hundreds of thousands of dollars, according to industry experts quoted by the agency.
This hot trend is being closely watched by AI companies, which have sharply increased their advertising over the past year. Generative AI platforms spent more than $1 billion on digital ads in the United States in 2025, up 126% from the previous year, according to data from Sensor Tower.
Now, Influencer marketing is emerging as the next battleground in the AI boom, with tech firms racing to tap popular creators to attract users and stand out in an increasingly crowded market.
How much are these companies offering?
Microsoft and Google have paid social media creators between $400,000 and $600,000 for long-term partnerships spanning several months. Meanwhile, AI companies are willing to spend a lot more than others, the agency said.
Companies building AI have a lot of money to spare. For example, Anthropic recently raised over $10 billion at a $350 billion valuation, while OpenAI was valued at $500 billion late last year. On top of that, tech giants like Microsoft, Alphabet and Meta are each worth trillions of dollars, meaning all these players have deep pockets, and hence, willing to spend aggressively to stay ahead.
Some creators can charge as much as $100,000 per post. “Some of these bigger companies have so much money to spend,” said AJ Eckstein, founder and CEO of Creator Match, adding, “they don’t care to negotiate.”
Digital ad spending by Google and Microsoft to promote their AI products jumped roughly 495% last month compared with a year earlier, according to Sensor Tower. OpenAI also increased its digital ad spending more than 10 times in 2025.
Beyond sponsored posts, AI companies are also spending heavily on creators by extending invitations for events to select individuals, offering early access to new tools, as well as paying for their travel and accommodations.
Some creators refuse to be swayed
Though the paycheques may seem like a gold mine, not all creators are comfortable with accepting brand deals tied to AI products. Different individuals have their own reasons to do so.
Some said they have turned down deals with AI companies due to ethical, environmental and creative concerns. Others said their audiences can be hostile toward AI sponsorships, creating fear of backlash or getting “canceled”, a situation where an individual is targeted by netizens.
A few creators also told CNBC that they are rejecting potentially tens of thousands of dollars in sponsored deals related to AI. Creator agency experts said backlash tends to be strongest around tools that generate images or video, which many creators see as directly replacing their artistic labor, CNBC reported.
Content creator Jack Lepiarz, who goes by the username Jack the Whipper and has more than 7 million followers across platforms, told CNBC he immediately declines any brand deal that involves the promotion of AI.
“I cannot in good conscience support something that’s going to make it harder for normal people to make a living,” said Lepiarz, whose content tends to focus on his performances at Renaissance fairs.
In a nutshell, this means that some influencers draw a hard line when it comes to AI. Even if a brand deal pays well, they choose to stay away from promoting AI products, often to protect their values, credibility, or relationship with their audience.
