Magenta Associates and University of Sussex launch AI literacy programme for senior communicators

Employee-owned, B Corp communications consultancy Magenta Associates and the University of Sussex have launched AI Literacy for Communicators, an executive upskilling programme designed for senior PR, marketing and internal communications professionals.

The partnership has been formed in response to the widening capability gap in the communications industry since the emergence of AI tools like ChatGPT and Claude. Original research published by Magenta Associates and the University of Sussex, the CheatGPT white paper, found that 80 per cent of UK PR and communications content writers now use generative AI tools at work, yet 85 per cent have received no training in how to use them and just 29 per cent of organisations have written guidelines on AI use. The same research found that only 11 per cent of agency-side practitioners talk openly to clients about their AI use, even though 66 per cent of respondents said workplace training would be useful.

The gap is mirrored downstream. Magenta’s Search Forward research, published in late 2025, found that 66 per cent of UK B2B decision-makers already use AI tools such as ChatGPT, Copilot and Perplexity to research suppliers, and 45 per cent rank AI as one of their primary research channels, ahead of LinkedIn (41 per cent). With buyers using AI to find and evaluate communications services, communicators need the literacy to be found and the literacy to use these tools credibly themselves.

AI Literacy for Communicators is built to address this gap at a senior level. The programme runs across four structured sessions covering: the new AI communications economy; the foundations of AI literacy; ethical risk and safeguards; and the practical integration of AI into creative and campaign workflows. The programme runs as a CPD pilot, not formally accredited, and begins in June 2026. It will be delivered entirely online and delegates receive a University of Sussex certificate on completion.

Jo Sutherland, managing director of Magenta Associates, and Dr Tanya Kant, associate professor in Media and Cultural Studies (Digital Media) at the University of Sussex, will co-facilitate the programme.

Sutherland is currently reading for an MSt in AI, Ethics and Society at the University of Cambridge and is a contributing author to AI for PR (Kogan Page, May 2026). She serves on the Impact and Industry Advisory Board for the University of Sussex’s Faculty of Media, Arts and Humanities, and has conducted original research with Dr Kant, including the CheatGPT study.

Kant is author of the book Making It Personal: Algorithmic Personalization, Identity and Everyday Life and has published other work on AI, social media profiling, digital media ethics, algorithmic literacy, digital identity practice, personalisation and broadcasting, and bots.

“The PR and communications sector is in a difficult position,” said Sutherland. “Everyone is using AI. Very few are using it well. As our research found, the vast majority communications and content professionals are using these tools, but they’re doing so without any formal training or company guidelines to refer to. That is a professional, client and reputational risk all at once, and it’s avoidable. This programme is built to replace guesswork with competence.”

Dr Kant added: “Communicators are increasingly expected to make decisions about AI use without a clear understanding of how these systems operate, what shapes their outputs or where their limitations lie. We have designed this programme to help leaders move beyond experimentation and develop a more informed and responsible approach to using AI within professional communications practice.”

AI Literacy for Communicators will run as a series of live online sessions. Registration is now open, with fees payable through the University of Sussex online shop. Sessions are designed for communications leaders, senior practitioners and those responsible for setting AI policy within their teams, across every sector.

Further information, including full curriculum, fees and registration, is available at https://wwwstage.sussex.ac.uk/study/short-courses/continuing-professional-development-courses/ai-literacy

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