AI in Brand Naming: Supercharging Creativity, Not Replacing It

In the ever-evolving landscape of artificial intelligence, there's an eerie, persistent concern amongst the branding community that AI will eventually replace a lot of human creativity, especially in brand naming. AI in Brand

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By Scott Milano, Founder and Managing Director at Tanj.

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As someone deeply immersed in the world of naming for more than 20 years — I’ve run naming teams for a global brand consultancy & managed my own naming agency since 2009 — I can tell you I too have concerns. We have no idea how large language models and tools like ChatGPT, Claude or DeepSeek will evolve in the next year, let alone 5 years. 

Despite not being able to see the future with great clarity, I still believe AI is poised to become the ultimate wingman for skilled namers, amplifying our creative potential while handling the grunt work that often bogs down the naming process.

The AI Naming Reality Check

Let's address the elephant in the room: AI's current limitations in brand naming. 

If you play around with AI naming tools, you will probably notice they are not very good. The output is often weak at best, and you can get stuck in creative cul-de-sacs, spitting out variations of the same ideas with diminishing returns. It’s like watching a DJ who only knows how to remix one song — eventually, all beats sound the same. 

If you are relying solely on AI to produce actual names, you see it lacks the nuanced understanding that makes great brand names stick. It can’t grasp the subtle cultural resonances, emotional undertones, or strategic implications that transform a good name into a great one. 

And it really can’t produce truly novel ideas — like far-fetched names and concepts that are out of left field, but when they’re set in motion as an actual brand name, they feel right at home. 

Where AI Shines: The Creative Catalyst

Despite its shortcomings, here is where I believe AI gets exciting. In the hands of highly skilled namers and creatives who understand how to leverage AI in unique, meaningful ways, the technology can turbocharge creativity. 

Imagine having a brainstorming partner that never gets tired, never runs out of ideas, and can instantly leap between different creative territories. It’s really powerful to have an AI assistant that you can push relentlessly. 

AI also excels at generating words, phrases, ideas and associations that can spark entirely new directions for human exploration. It can even pull up esoteric information in seconds that exposes a creative namer to novel source material that would take hours or days to unearth traditionally. 

I call this the “wall-of-words” approach, where I let AI generate a massive amount of text-based information as stimulus, and then I as a human namer can swing from word to word, idea to idea, creatively exploring exciting concepts that I forge into actual polished brand names. 

The Human Touch: Irreplaceable Elements

Aside from AI’s inability to generate large amounts of quality, refined names, here is what AI will likely never replace: the human ability to extract deep insights from live stakeholder conversations, navigate complex organizational dynamics, and craft compelling narratives around names. Professional namers don't just create names — we are strategic partners who help clarify brand goals, build consensus, and guide organizations through critical identity decisions.

Consider the art of stakeholder management. Can AI read the room during a complex naming discussion? Can it sense when a CEO's hesitation about a name stems from personal experience rather than strategic concerns? Can it adapt its presentation style to different audiences or build bridges between competing internal viewpoints? Not a chance.

Moreover, great naming is not just about creativity— it’s about taste, judgment, and the ability to recognize when something truly special emerges from the creative process. It’s about understanding the difference between a name that is merely clever and one that has the potential to become a powerful brand asset. Only humans can do that. 

When to Prioritize AI in Naming

When should you let AI take the wheel? I believe relying solely on AI is fine for lower-stakes naming projects — think product features, minor brand extensions, or initial brainstorming sessions. AI can generate dozens of rough or directional options that fit your parameters, all in seconds. This can either kickstart further creation, or it can lead to an actual usable name if and when the stakes are low. 

However, for major naming initiatives — think company rebrands or launching new product lines — AI should never be thought of as THE solution to getting to a final name. It’s just not going to be able to get teams to the finish line on mission-critical naming initiatives. 

Instead, AI should be positioned as a tool in the toolbox of skilled creators or namers who understand how to harness its generative power while avoiding its pitfalls — creatively, strategically and even through the more mundane due diligence work like quickly screening names for high level conflicts on the internet or in key languages. 

Worth noting, there are a whole slew of AI trademark and screening tools out there to assess the viability of a name. But guess who makes the final call on what’s really viable? Yes, humans.  

The Future of Naming

The future of brand naming is not about AI replacing humans — it’s about humans using AI to create better outcomes. Professional namers who embrace AI as a tool will be able to work more efficiently, explore more creative territories, and focus their energy on the strategic and human elements that truly drive successful naming projects. 

For brand owners and marketers, this means having access to more sophisticated naming intelligence than ever before — both human and artificial. Whether you’re working with AI tools directly for smaller projects or engaging professional namers or naming agencies for major initiatives, the key is understanding where AI can help and where human expertise is essential.

In the end, AI will not solve the complex challenges of brand naming. But it can help us solve them better and more efficiently. By supercharging human creativity and handling more mundane tasks, AI can help unlock a new era of brand naming where the possibilities are endless. But the human touch will always remain irreplaceable.