Netflix will start showing AI ADVERTS midway through streams – as users threaten to cancel, saying 'no one wants this garbage'

Having your favourite TV show or movie interrupted by adverts is already frustrating, but things could soon be getting worse for Netflix users.

At its ‘Upfront’ event on Wednesday, the streaming giant revealed that it would be incorporating adverts made with ‘generative AI‘.

Arriving in 2026, these AI-generated adverts will begin to appear not only during mid-content breaks but also when users press pause.

And the only way to get rid of these annoying intrusions will be to pay for the more expensive ad-free subscriptions.

But in a further twist, Netflix says AI would be used ‘instantly marry advertisers’ ads with the worlds of our shows’.

So rather than seeing a standard advert, users could be shown a commercial for a product they’d searched for earlier that day, mixed with content from a show.

As reported by The Verge, an example presented to advertisers placed a product over a background inspired by hit Netflix show Stranger Things.

However, furious Netflix customers have flocked to social media to express their outrage, with one writing: ‘My finger is hovering over the unsubscribe button Netflix.’

Netflix has announced that it will be rolling out AI adverts for all users on the cheaper subscription with ads from 2026

On social media, Netflix subscribers have already started threatening to cancel their accounts over the change

Netflix launched its ad subscription tier in 2022 as a cheaper alternative to its main subscription service.

In exchange for being shown adverts alongside streamed content, subscribers pay £5.99 per month ($7.99 US price) rather than £12.99 per month ($17.99 US price) for a standard ad-free subscription.

Today, Netflix says that 94 million people out of 300 million total subscribers opted for the subscription with ads.

That is up 34 per cent from last November and more than double the 40 million ad-subscriptions Netflix claimed at the same time last year.

While this side of the business is relatively new for Netflix, the company now seems prepared to rapidly develop its advertising income.

Speaking to advertisers at the Upfront event, Amy Reinhard, president of advertising at Netflix, said: ‘The foundations of our ads business are in place, and going forward, the pace of progress will be even faster.’

Part of that ‘faster’ development now appears to involve including adverts that use AI-generated elements.

Netflix says that they now have the capability to ‘build custom advertising creative with added overlays, call to action, second screen buttons, and more to serve the right ad to the right member at the right time.’

Netflix says the adverts will blend product promotions with elements from shows. That means your adverts might be altered to match the tone or style of shows and films. Pictured, supernatural comedy Wednesday

The streaming giant says it will use AI to make their adverts more targeted to individuals, but has not confirmed how much user data will be used in this process (file photo)

On X, one angry Netflix customer wrote that it was ‘time to cancel the subscription’

Another furious commenter wrote that ‘no one wants this garbage’ and threatened to cancel their account

This means the new adverts will be context-aware, personalised to the individual viewer, and may even be interactive with clickable links, QR codes and targeted product placement.

Netflix says: ‘These formats will be available by 2026 in all ad-supported countries.’

However, current Netflix subscribers have already taken to social media to threaten to cancel their accounts over the news.

On X, formerly Twitter, one commenter wrote: ‘Gross no thanks @netflix no one wants this garbage. I’ll never subscribe again if this get put in.

‘@netflix nobody likes AI. Guess it’s time to cancel the subscription,’ another added.

While another chimed in: ‘It’s like they’re trying to lose subscriptions.’

On social media, many commenters even started to consider how they would access their favourite shows after they cancelled their Netflix account.

On Netflix subscriber wrote: ‘I’m at the point of cancelling all of them and just buying DVDs.’

One commenter joked that it was ‘like they’re trying to lose subscriptions’

Some commenters began to plan how they would watch content without their Netflix account, with one saying they would start to use DVDs

Another commenter advocated illegally pirating shows from Netflix, calling it ‘morally correct’ on account of the AI adverts

Another even added: ‘It is morally correct to pirate shows from @Netflix.’

Exactly how these new forms of ads will affect users still remains to be seen.

Netflix has not yet confirmed how much of users’ behaviour will be tracked in order to personalise the adverts.

Nor has the company said how clear the distinctions between an AI-generated advert and legitimate content will be.

What is clear is that anyone who doesn’t want to see these adverts will either need to pay for the more expensive ad-free tier or stop using Netflix altogether.

Netflix did not immediately respond to MailOnline’s request for comment.