Like everything else in the world, AI has had an impact on crisis communications.
I’m not just talking about the scary TikTok stuff you see about hackers using AI to code worms, or even the much publicised Grok images of a deeply concerning Elon Musk in women’s underwear.
We’re talking about much more tangible, frequent, day to day issues management.
In practice, AI now sits across almost every part of crisis work but let’s focus on a few here for clarity: detection, analysis, scenario planning, testing and monitoring. Used properly, it can remove friction.
Detection: AI lets you see further ahead, faster
Early warning systems have genuinely improved. Alerts from AI enabled platforms and social monitoring tools like Brandwatch, Sentinel One and Gemini alerts let you spot narrative shifts before they become formal media enquiries. Unusual journalist activity. Clustering themes. Spikes in specific language across outlets.
You see movement earlier than you would have even two years ago. That buys us time, but it also creates more noise. Not every spike becomes a story. The skill lies in knowing what’s actually material. AI shows you patterns. Experienced advisors tell you which patterns matter.
Analysis: How serious is the situation?
Once an issue breaks, AI cuts the time it takes to understand what you’re dealing with.
LLMs can cluster commentary, summarise sentiment and extract repeated claims in minutes. In private GPT environments, you can even build synthetic audience groups to test how different communities might react to your response. Useful when your internal team is too close to see clearly.
Claude’s particularly strong at narrative synthesis, taking fragmented reporting and showing you the storyline that’s forming. Essential when trying to understand how an issue will be framed.
Identification of the origin of a story, it’s evolution and its likely risk of escalating are all things that a LLM can advise on.
Scenario Planning: An AI audience
Companies can run draft holding statements through GPT or Claude and stress-test them.
Copilot’s integration with Outlook has real practical value here, it summarises long email threads instantly, tracks decision points, keeps distributed teams aligned in real time. In a crisis, internal clarity matters as much as external messaging.
All of this reduces hesitation, but the big calls still come down to judgement. Who speaks? How soon? How much certainty do you need before going public? Experience shapes those decisions, not probability modelling.
Testing: Finding the right tone
AI works as a pressure tool. You can interrogate drafts from an adversarial perspective. Synthetic audience testing reveals how language might land with different groups. Weak phrasing surfaces fast.
What AI can’t replicate? Pattern recognition from people who’ve actually been in the room when it goes wrong. They know how quickly a defensive sentence becomes the headline. They recognise the moment where clarity beats completeness.
Technology strengthens preparation. It doesn’t replace instinct.
Monitoring: Tracking motion at pace
After the first statement, the issue often evolves. AI-enhanced monitoring – whether through Brandwatch, One Signal or Gemini custom dashboards, lets you track how narratives shift across media and digital channels. You see whether your message is being repeated, reframed or ignored.
That visibility allows for informed adjustment. But information isn’t strategy. Deciding whether to hold the line or recalibrate still sits with people who understand the broader context.
The Bottom Line
AI has made crisis teams more efficient. It cuts time spent gathering, organising and stress-testing information. It enables faster internal alignment and broader monitoring.
What it hasn’t done? Remove accountability.
In moments of reputational risk, speed matters. So does clarity. But clarity comes from judgement, not automation.
To learn more about Corporate, not Corporate and our crisis and issues management services, get in touch.
About the author
Jeremy Page | Global Head of Brand and Strategy
With over 15 years of experience in industry, Jeremy is a seasoned expert in all things PR, Corporate Communications and AI.
Jeremy’s diverse sector experience spans retail, government, health, education, food and drink, music, mobile, technology, and events.
