‍Jennifer Dasilva

Executive Officer, VML

Q: Where do you see the biggest opportunity for innovation in advertising?

A: We’re seeing a return to in person activations that aim to foster community. Brands see the power in helping connect like minded and valued people through activations while ensuring alignment to their brand.

Q: What's one thing AI will change about advertising?

A: I believe it’s been said before by others and completely agree with the overall sentiment. AI can’t replace our creativity but it will change the speed at which we ideate. We’ll move faster to get through the bad ideas, lean into the ideas with potential to grow those into memorable campaigns.

Q: What's one thing AI can't replace in advertising?

A: AI can’t replace intuition and creativity. We pride ourselves on being in an industry that’s creative. AI tools have been exceedingly helpful in deriving to make informed decisions. But we can’t replace  the power of intuition and creativity that comes from the day to day human experience and years of experience working in advertising on campaigns. AI tools can provide suggestions, but humans are responsible for the final calls.

Q: If you could change one thing about the advertising industry, what would it be?

A: I would change how people enter our industry. Amidst the current global economy, it’s harder than ever to break into the advertising pipeline. We’re seeing a rise in multi hyphenates (largely due to necessity) with many talents that can’t get into entry level roles. Also our potential junior talent are competing against more experienced talent with connections that they simply haven’t had time to foster.

‍

Danielle Austen

Founder & CEO, Fluent360

Q: What's one thing AI can't replace in advertising?

A: The one thing AI can't replace is the recognition and articulation of a human insight. AI helps us see faster and can generate endless options, but it's built on what's already been said. Great advertising comes from discovering a truth people feel but have never heard expressed, and from having the judgment to know it's the right thing to say. That comes from lived understanding of how people feel and why, and that is uniquely human.

Q: What's one thing brands are getting wrong about consumers today?

A: It seems brands have retreated from engaging with consumer identities, and I believe that's a mistake. Our industry relies on consumer insight for successful outcomes. Cultural insights are a critical part of effective strategy, compelling storytelling, and ultimately, business results. We can debate how loudly brands should speak, but we can't afford to stop listening. If we do, we're hurting ourselves and the brands we represent.

‍

Cindy Gallop

Founder & CEO, MakeLoveNotPorn

Q: If you could change one thing about the advertising industry, what would it be?

A: Removing the single biggest barrier to brilliant female leadership: insecure men.

Q: Where do you see the biggest opportunity for innovation in advertising?

A: In the area that brought fresh energy to Cannes Lions this year - creators - and specifically in what I consider the most overlooked new medium in our industry, which is streaming. Having taught as a professor at Kai Cenat's Streamer University for two years running, I can tell you that brands and agencies are sleeping on streaming as a phenomenal opportunity for collaboration around authenticity, experiences and organic growth.

‍

Justine Feron

Chief Strategy Officer, Havas New York

Q: What's one thing brands are getting wrong about consumers today?

A: With all the talk of performance and automation and efficiency, it’s easy to forget that, by and large, people don’t just buy things that chase them around the Internet until they relent: they buy things they desire. Being magnetic and compelling and memorable are underrated (but eternally important) virtues.

‍

Brooke Stites

Founder & CEO, Modern Arts

Q: Where do you see the biggest opportunity for innovation in advertising?

A: I think the biggest opportunity is in making things people genuinely want. That may sound like an advertising cliche, but it’s genuinely harder to do than it sounds. When a brand puts its energy into telling a great story and builds in distribution from the start that is not reliant on interruption, people not only see it (vs skip it) they remember it. This takes a new mindset, where brands see themselves as storytellers and distributors, plan out their audience engagement with relevance as the priority over reach, and then build the work around earning that relationship.

Q: What's one thing AI will change about advertising?

A: AI has leveled the playing field in a real way, and I think that's a good thing. It removes some of the grind from mid- and lower-funnel asset production, and creates room to focus on more meaningful work. But it also means the world is flooded with content that looks polished and says nothing, content that doesn't make anyone feel anything. When anyone can make something look good, looking good matters less. What matters more than ever is a real point of view, real taste, and a story that genuinely resonates with people. So in a funny way, AI is pushing our industry back toward the things that were always the hardest to fake: craft, perspective, and a true understanding of people.

Q: What's one thing AI can't replace in advertising?

A: The human relationships. The deep truths that comes from someone's lived experience rather than a pattern in the data. Originality comes from actually living a life, and caring comes from having something at stake. AI can be a great tool and even a solid collaborator, but it's missing the magic.

Q: What's one thing brands are getting wrong about consumers today?

A: I think a lot of brands underestimate their audiences. There's an assumption that attention spans have collapsed. But look at how people actually spend their evenings, they'll binge an entire documentary series, listen to three-hour podcasts, and follow an athlete's story across a whole season. People have plenty of attention to give to the things they care about. When brands respect that and offer something with real substance, people respond with a kind of loyalty that no media buy can create.

Q: If you could change one thing about the advertising industry, what would it be?

A: I'd change how we define success and frankly, how we define advertising. As an industry we've become very good at counting things like impressions and reach, and much less good at asking whether anyone actually cared. I'd love to see us put more weight on time spent, on the conversations we start, and on whether people come away feeling differently about a brand. If we measured what really matters, I think we'd naturally start making work with more heart and more substance, and audiences would stop treating advertising as something to avoid.

‍

Tevis Houston

Founder & CEO, Friends Everywhere

Q: What's one thing AI will change about advertising?

A: It will show us which brands know who they are. AI reflects whatever a company already is, so the work starts with clear strategic thinking and clean data. Skip that and you're not adopting AI. You're scaling the cracks.

Q: If you could change one thing about the advertising industry, what would it be?

A: I'd protect time to think, instead of flying through everything at the same pace. The decisions that matter most to the business deserve the most thought, and that takes time.