Pre-festive AI searches surge 2.6x as Indians embrace digital tools: GIPSI GRWAi report

New Delhi: As the country enters the peak of its festive season, artificial intelligence is increasingly influencing consumer behaviour, with AI platform-related searches reaching over 654 million in pre-festive 2025, marking a 2.6-fold increase from the previous year. 

Indians are turning to AI tools to plan festive looks, make purchase decisions, and manage celebrations, according to the latest GRWAi (Get Ready With AI) report by GIPSI, the HI+AI research and insights division of Tonic Worldwide.

The GRWAi report, positioned as a “Festive Booster Camp” for brands and marketers, highlights significant AI trends shaping festive consumption in 2025. With festive e-commerce GMV projected at Rs 1.15 lakh crore following the GST Bachat Utsav, the findings provide insight into how consumers are integrating AI into their festive preparations.

The report observes that consumers are increasingly outsourcing parts of their festive planning to AI, from shopping lists to recipes, with AI overviews emerging as a prominent reference point. In e-commerce, AI is supporting brands by recovering abandoned carts, nudging hesitant buyers, and providing personalised recommendations. 

For instance, over 10 million Amazon users in India tried Rufus, Amazon’s AI shopping assistant, while Myntra’s AI assistant Maya has reportedly increased the likelihood of purchases threefold and helped users discover products across more categories.

Social media behaviour is also being shaped by AI prompts, which have become a new form of consumer engagement. The top ten YouTube Shorts for “Gemini AI Photo Editing Garba/Dandiya” recorded 2.7 million views in 2025, and searches for “AI Prompts” reached 1.6 million in the pre-festive period, representing a 7.5-fold rise from last year.

Commenting on the report, Anjali Malthankar, Global Strategy Director and GIPSI Co-Head, Tonic Worldwide, said, “This festive season GRWAi is not just a report but a CTA as we enter the second half of the season. AI is not just a marketer’s tool, there are clear signals of consumers experimenting, engaging with and flaunting AI. Some of this behaviour is intentional and some has slipped into their behaviour without them realizing it.

She added, “I strongly feel as far as AI is concerned, predictive, generative or both, brands can ignore AI but can’t escape it. Because either you are lacking, leveling or leading with AI. There is no ’fighting’ it.

“While I say this, I don’t think the role of HI (Human intelligence) will be undermined. In fact, in our report, we caution brands to HI proof the use of AI.”