<b>Unveiling Mexican Perspectives on AI Meets Luxury Marketing in Mexico</b>

This study addresses how Artificial Intelligence (AI) redefines luxury marketing by integrating Means-Ends Chain (MEC) theory with Zaltman Metaphor Elicitation Technique (ZMET)-driven insights. To the best of our knowledge, this study pioneers the identification of specific AI attributes (e.g., Informativeness, Innovation) that drive benefits/means (e.g., Facility, Utility, Safety, Satisfaction, Anxiety) to contribute to the value/ends (e.g., Happiness, Empowerment, Lifestyle). It embeds triangulation to address critiques of ZMET’s interpretive subjectivity by grounding metaphors in MEC’s structured hierarchy. We provide a structured understanding of consumer decision-making pathways regarding AI in luxury marketing by Hierarchical Value Maps (HVMs). Further, our follow-up study aims to examine gender differences in consumer value mechanisms by leveraging ZMET to reveal subconscious cognitive structures.