At the most recent iGB Live 2026 expo, Clint Griscti, Apidae Co-Founder & CEO; Peter Gunni, Traffic Lab CEO; Stephen McBrinn, GameTimeDigital CEO; Tomasz Przybylowicz, Media&Leads Polska CEO & Founder; and Vladimir Jankovic, Game Lounge Chief Strategy & Transformation Officer, all took to the stage to discuss what the future of affiliate marketing may look like.
Affiliate models across all industries have had a tumultuous few years. As the Digital Age continues to accelerate, so too do the developments in entertainment and customer expectations.
Younger demographics are increasingly relying on AI and forming parasocial connections with online streamers – both of which create unique opportunities for marketing teams. But how can the gambling industry specifically navigate this world?
Both Jankovic and McBrinn opened the conversation by saying AI is the biggest driver of change right now. As more and more companies race to adopt AI into daily operations, each one is trying to do a better job at integrating it than the competition. This can lead to growing issues that are overlooked early on, or lost opportunities later down the line. But there is also a sense that AI should not replace talented individuals.
Instead, these talented individuals should be trained on how to use AI to elevate their projects and reduce their personal workload. Przybylowicz noted that if a company uses AI, it needs to be kept on a “short leash” with critical insights into how cost and time effective it actually is in the company.
McBrinn also laughed as he explained that AI has caused a major overhaul in how SEO and Google search results work. “It doesn’t matter how far away we try to get from Google, we always end up back there.” Google's algorithm can be inconsistent and an established SEO strategy can quickly become ineffective; and although his multi-revenue affiliate business also relies on platforms like Meta and TikTok, these pay-per-click (PPC) results always drive him back to the search engine. This drives into another pressing issue.
So many companies, not just in this industry, are using AI generated content en masse because they believe that quantity will outlast quality, but the panel seemed to disagree
People continue to rely on AI LLMs, such as ChatGPT, to act as search engines for them. With rising costs to maintain these AI models, it seems likely that they will be monetised with advertisements soon. “This will be great for affiliates,” Griscti joked, “but not for mankind!”
Interestingly, Gunni had a rather grounded response when asked about what he believes the biggest threat to the affiliate industry is. “Relationships have been the core of iGaming, but these have deteriorated in recent years,” he responded. “Healthy competition has become toxic competition.'' He reflected on how companies used to help each other out more in the past, but over the last half a decade or so, this has been replaced with aggressive attitudes. “The lone affiliate is very lonely.”
But it is not just other affiliates that the panel reported having issues with, but that delinquency rates with operators and end companies have also gone through the roof.
Gunni reportedly has to keep track of some operators by manually creating accounts and depositing money into them to see if this FTD payment is channelled back to the affiliate. If all communication breaks down between them and the operator, then he said that he has begun naming and shaming them to other affiliate businesses. “Tough times require tough measures,” he said.
Looking to the future, Przybylowicz emphasised the need to use localised material “written by real people who understand the real, local market.”
So many companies, not just in this industry, are using AI generated content en masse because they believe that quantity will outlast quality, but the panel seemed to disagree. They emphasised over and over again that AI is powerful, but it needs to support a talented individual, not outright replace their voice.
Jankovic implored for stronger partnerships with more transparency behind them. He also agreed with Gunni’s earlier point, and said that companies need to begin collaborating with one another, rather than simply competing if they want to move forward and evolve the industry.
McBrinn floated the idea of an open forum to discuss matters and problems with operators, while Griscti offered a more personal way to help: Every panellist could invite one professional from another affiliate group into their already established Telegram group chat, to create a safe and engaging environment to share ideas, solve issues and push for greater development as a united front.