The Media Rating Council (MRC), as part of what it calls an ongoing effort to develop standards for media measurement, has begun an effort to evaluate existing standards and guidelines and develop supplementary guidance in certain focus areas, as it relates to the rapidly evolving use of artificial intelligence and Machine Learning models in areas that intersect with media measurement processes and products.
Explaining the interim guidance, the MRC says it observed AI being applied to measurement processes from both ongoing audits (across all media types, formats, delivery methods, etc.) and MRC members noting the growing use of AI-powered media measurement products, as well as the use of AI by both consumers and content creators. “Given the growth in adoption and impact on media measurement methodologies and processes, the MRC made this effort a top priority for 2026,” it said.
Furthermore, in addition to “a need to consolidate and update this applicable guidance and these requirements for today’s use cases, there is a need to produce incremental guidance and requirements for evolving AI use cases,” the MRC added.
These include Generative AI and both Assistive AI and Embedded AI with the Agentic AI category.
As such, MRC said it is embarking on an effort to provide the marketplace with guidance on existing standards that intersect with AI use in measurement that are currently used in MRC’s process to evaluate audited services.
It also seeks to develop and set standards that cover identified gaps in measurement areas, as agreed to by the MRC AI Standards Working Group.
This is scheduled to be completed in a phased manner which began during the first quarter of 2026.
Sponsoring organizations such as the ANA, 4As, IAB Tech Lab, media buyers and sellers, measurement services and other media measurement users helped the MRC in coming up with the interim guidance.
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