{"id":10177,"date":"2026-01-14T01:49:19","date_gmt":"2026-01-14T06:49:19","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/advertisingweek.com\/aw360\/2026\/01\/14\/what-does-2026-hold-for-marketing-creativity-and-ai\/"},"modified":"2026-01-11T13:56:43","modified_gmt":"2026-01-11T18:56:43","slug":"what-does-2026-hold-for-marketing-creativity-and-ai","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/advertisingweek.com\/aw360\/news\/what-does-2026-hold-for-marketing-creativity-and-ai\/10177\/","title":{"rendered":"What Does 2026 Hold for Marketing, Creativity and AI?"},"content":{"rendered":"\n<p class=\"wp-block-paragraph\"><em>By Drew Ungvarsky, CEO and founder of Grow<\/em><\/p>\n\n\n\n\n<h2 class=\"wp-block-heading\"><strong>Experience Platforms Will Deliver Brand Value<\/strong><\/h2>\n<p class=\"wp-block-paragraph\">The brands doing the most interesting work in 2026 will be the ones who shift from chasing attention in short bursts to investing in experience platforms that evolve over time and reward repeat engagement.<\/p>\n\n\n\n\n\n<p class=\"wp-block-paragraph\">This shift changes not just what brands build, but how they bring value to their audiences. Platforms demand that brands earn attention by creating content and experiences that are worthy of seeking out and returning to.<\/p>\n\n\n\n\n\n\n\n<p class=\"wp-block-paragraph\">AI will also shun the spotlight, supporting these platforms behind the scenes, enabling personalisation and responsiveness. But the real differentiator will be sustained engagement, as brands focus on creating value over time with ever-evolving digital destinations.\u201d<\/p>\n\n\n\n\n<h2 class=\"wp-block-heading\"><strong>Creativity And Technology Will Speak The Same Language<\/strong><\/h2>\n<p class=\"wp-block-paragraph\">In 2026, the distinction between &#8216;creative thinking&#8217; and &#8216;technical execution&#8217; will feel increasingly outdated. The strongest ideas will emerge from teams where creativity and technology work side by side, shaping concepts together rather than passing them across silos.<\/p>\n\n\n\n\n\n<p class=\"wp-block-paragraph\">We\u2019re already seeing a backlash against work where AI is treated as the idea itself, or where technology is bolted on at the end. When teams are fragmented, the work shows. When they\u2019re integrated, the technology disappears, and the experience feels effortless.<\/p>\n\n\n\n\n\n\n\n<p class=\"wp-block-paragraph\">As tools become more powerful and accessible, craft and judgement become the real differentiators. Which means knowing how ideas behave in real systems, and designing accordingly, is going to be so important in the next twelve months.<\/p>\n\n\n\n\n<h2 class=\"wp-block-heading\"><strong>AI-Collaborative Teams Will Take the Lead<\/strong><\/h2>\n<p class=\"wp-block-paragraph\">After a period of rapid experimentation, 2026 will be less about proving who uses AI and more about how teams use it together. The pressure to adopt new tools has shown that technology only improves the work when people are all on the same page.<\/p>\n\n\n\n\n\n<p class=\"wp-block-paragraph\">Audiences are quick to spot when AI is used lazily or performatively. But when creative and technical teams collaborate closely, AI can become that quiet enabler, accelerating workflows, unlocking new possibilities and supporting better ideas.<\/p>\n\n\n\n\n\n\n\n<p class=\"wp-block-paragraph\">The best experiences don\u2019t need to explain the technology behind them. They\u2019ll reflect confidence, clarity and care in how they were made. The future isn\u2019t about AI leading creativity, but rather about teams that know how to lead with creativity in a more technologically complex world.<\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"<p>The best experiences don\u2019t need to explain the technology behind them. They\u2019ll reflect confidence, clarity and care in how they were made.<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":7,"featured_media":10178,"comment_status":"closed","ping_status":"open","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"_acf_changed":false,"content-type":"","editor_notices":[],"footnotes":""},"categories":[1],"tags":[3],"topics":[2],"class_list":["post-10177","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","has-post-thumbnail","hentry","category-news","tag-brands-marketers","topics-editorial"],"acf":[],"yoast_head":"<!-- This site is optimized with the Yoast SEO Premium plugin v28.0 (Yoast SEO v28.0) - https:\/\/yoast.com\/product\/yoast-seo-premium-wordpress\/ -->\n<title>What Does 2026 Hold for Marketing, Creativity and AI? | AW360<\/title>\n<meta name=\"robots\" content=\"index, follow, max-snippet:-1, max-image-preview:large, max-video-preview:-1\" \/>\n<link rel=\"canonical\" href=\"https:\/\/advertisingweek.com\/aw360\/news\/what-does-2026-hold-for-marketing-creativity-and-ai\/10177\/\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:locale\" content=\"en_US\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:type\" content=\"article\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:title\" content=\"What Does 2026 Hold for Marketing, Creativity and AI?\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:description\" content=\"The best experiences don\u2019t need to explain the technology behind them. They\u2019ll reflect confidence, clarity and care in how they were made.\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:url\" content=\"https:\/\/advertisingweek.com\/aw360\/news\/what-does-2026-hold-for-marketing-creativity-and-ai\/10177\/\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:site_name\" content=\"AW360\" \/>\n<meta property=\"article:published_time\" content=\"2026-01-14T06:49:19+00:00\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:image\" content=\"https:\/\/advertisingweek.com\/aw360\/wp-content\/uploads\/sites\/3\/2026\/01\/What-Does-2026-Hold-for-Marketing.jpg\" \/>\n\t<meta property=\"og:image:width\" content=\"1600\" \/>\n\t<meta property=\"og:image:height\" content=\"900\" \/>\n\t<meta property=\"og:image:type\" content=\"image\/jpeg\" \/>\n<meta name=\"author\" content=\"Advertising Week\" \/>\n<meta name=\"twitter:card\" content=\"summary_large_image\" \/>\n<meta name=\"twitter:label1\" content=\"Written by\" \/>\n\t<meta name=\"twitter:data1\" content=\"Advertising Week\" \/>\n\t<meta name=\"twitter:label2\" content=\"Est. reading time\" \/>\n\t<meta name=\"twitter:data2\" content=\"2 minutes\" \/>\n<script type=\"application\/ld+json\" class=\"yoast-schema-graph\">{\"@context\":\"https:\\\/\\\/schema.org\",\"@graph\":[{\"@type\":\"Article\",\"@id\":\"https:\\\/\\\/advertisingweek.com\\\/aw360\\\/news\\\/what-does-2026-hold-for-marketing-creativity-and-ai\\\/10177\\\/#article\",\"isPartOf\":{\"@id\":\"https:\\\/\\\/advertisingweek.com\\\/aw360\\\/news\\\/what-does-2026-hold-for-marketing-creativity-and-ai\\\/10177\\\/\"},\"author\":{\"name\":\"Advertising Week\",\"@id\":\"https:\\\/\\\/advertisingweek.com\\\/aw360\\\/#\\\/schema\\\/person\\\/ae698b8b96e141836006836db70d9e69\"},\"headline\":\"What Does 2026 Hold for Marketing, Creativity and AI?\",\"datePublished\":\"2026-01-14T06:49:19+00:00\",\"mainEntityOfPage\":{\"@id\":\"https:\\\/\\\/advertisingweek.com\\\/aw360\\\/news\\\/what-does-2026-hold-for-marketing-creativity-and-ai\\\/10177\\\/\"},\"wordCount\":387,\"publisher\":{\"@id\":\"https:\\\/\\\/advertisingweek.com\\\/aw360\\\/#organization\"},\"image\":{\"@id\":\"https:\\\/\\\/advertisingweek.com\\\/aw360\\\/news\\\/what-does-2026-hold-for-marketing-creativity-and-ai\\\/10177\\\/#primaryimage\"},\"thumbnailUrl\":\"https:\\\/\\\/advertisingweek.com\\\/aw360\\\/wp-content\\\/uploads\\\/sites\\\/3\\\/2026\\\/01\\\/What-Does-2026-Hold-for-Marketing.jpg\",\"keywords\":[\"Brands + Marketers\"],\"articleSection\":[\"News\"],\"inLanguage\":\"en-US\"},{\"@type\":\"WebPage\",\"@id\":\"https:\\\/\\\/advertisingweek.com\\\/aw360\\\/news\\\/what-does-2026-hold-for-marketing-creativity-and-ai\\\/10177\\\/\",\"url\":\"https:\\\/\\\/advertisingweek.com\\\/aw360\\\/news\\\/what-does-2026-hold-for-marketing-creativity-and-ai\\\/10177\\\/\",\"name\":\"What Does 2026 Hold for Marketing, Creativity and AI? | AW360\",\"isPartOf\":{\"@id\":\"https:\\\/\\\/advertisingweek.com\\\/aw360\\\/#website\"},\"primaryImageOfPage\":{\"@id\":\"https:\\\/\\\/advertisingweek.com\\\/aw360\\\/news\\\/what-does-2026-hold-for-marketing-creativity-and-ai\\\/10177\\\/#primaryimage\"},\"image\":{\"@id\":\"https:\\\/\\\/advertisingweek.com\\\/aw360\\\/news\\\/what-does-2026-hold-for-marketing-creativity-and-ai\\\/10177\\\/#primaryimage\"},\"thumbnailUrl\":\"https:\\\/\\\/advertisingweek.com\\\/aw360\\\/wp-content\\\/uploads\\\/sites\\\/3\\\/2026\\\/01\\\/What-Does-2026-Hold-for-Marketing.jpg\",\"datePublished\":\"2026-01-14T06:49:19+00:00\",\"breadcrumb\":{\"@id\":\"https:\\\/\\\/advertisingweek.com\\\/aw360\\\/news\\\/what-does-2026-hold-for-marketing-creativity-and-ai\\\/10177\\\/#breadcrumb\"},\"inLanguage\":\"en-US\",\"potentialAction\":[{\"@type\":\"ReadAction\",\"target\":[\"https:\\\/\\\/advertisingweek.com\\\/aw360\\\/news\\\/what-does-2026-hold-for-marketing-creativity-and-ai\\\/10177\\\/\"]}]},{\"@type\":\"ImageObject\",\"inLanguage\":\"en-US\",\"@id\":\"https:\\\/\\\/advertisingweek.com\\\/aw360\\\/news\\\/what-does-2026-hold-for-marketing-creativity-and-ai\\\/10177\\\/#primaryimage\",\"url\":\"https:\\\/\\\/advertisingweek.com\\\/aw360\\\/wp-content\\\/uploads\\\/sites\\\/3\\\/2026\\\/01\\\/What-Does-2026-Hold-for-Marketing.jpg\",\"contentUrl\":\"https:\\\/\\\/advertisingweek.com\\\/aw360\\\/wp-content\\\/uploads\\\/sites\\\/3\\\/2026\\\/01\\\/What-Does-2026-Hold-for-Marketing.jpg\",\"width\":1600,\"height\":900},{\"@type\":\"BreadcrumbList\",\"@id\":\"https:\\\/\\\/advertisingweek.com\\\/aw360\\\/news\\\/what-does-2026-hold-for-marketing-creativity-and-ai\\\/10177\\\/#breadcrumb\",\"itemListElement\":[{\"@type\":\"ListItem\",\"position\":1,\"name\":\"Home\",\"item\":\"https:\\\/\\\/advertisingweek.com\\\/aw360\\\/\"},{\"@type\":\"ListItem\",\"position\":2,\"name\":\"What Does 2026 Hold for Marketing, Creativity and AI?\"}]},{\"@type\":\"WebSite\",\"@id\":\"https:\\\/\\\/advertisingweek.com\\\/aw360\\\/#website\",\"url\":\"https:\\\/\\\/advertisingweek.com\\\/aw360\\\/\",\"name\":\"AW360\",\"description\":\"\",\"publisher\":{\"@id\":\"https:\\\/\\\/advertisingweek.com\\\/aw360\\\/#organization\"},\"potentialAction\":[{\"@type\":\"SearchAction\",\"target\":{\"@type\":\"EntryPoint\",\"urlTemplate\":\"https:\\\/\\\/advertisingweek.com\\\/aw360\\\/?s={search_term_string}\"},\"query-input\":{\"@type\":\"PropertyValueSpecification\",\"valueRequired\":true,\"valueName\":\"search_term_string\"}}],\"inLanguage\":\"en-US\"},{\"@type\":\"Organization\",\"@id\":\"https:\\\/\\\/advertisingweek.com\\\/aw360\\\/#organization\",\"name\":\"AW360\",\"url\":\"https:\\\/\\\/advertisingweek.com\\\/aw360\\\/\",\"logo\":{\"@type\":\"ImageObject\",\"inLanguage\":\"en-US\",\"@id\":\"https:\\\/\\\/advertisingweek.com\\\/aw360\\\/#\\\/schema\\\/logo\\\/image\\\/\",\"url\":\"https:\\\/\\\/advertisingweek.com\\\/aw360\\\/wp-content\\\/uploads\\\/sites\\\/3\\\/2026\\\/07\\\/AW360_Logo_2023_FullColor.png\",\"contentUrl\":\"https:\\\/\\\/advertisingweek.com\\\/aw360\\\/wp-content\\\/uploads\\\/sites\\\/3\\\/2026\\\/07\\\/AW360_Logo_2023_FullColor.png\",\"width\":1906,\"height\":849,\"caption\":\"AW360\"},\"image\":{\"@id\":\"https:\\\/\\\/advertisingweek.com\\\/aw360\\\/#\\\/schema\\\/logo\\\/image\\\/\"}},{\"@type\":\"Person\",\"@id\":\"https:\\\/\\\/advertisingweek.com\\\/aw360\\\/#\\\/schema\\\/person\\\/ae698b8b96e141836006836db70d9e69\",\"name\":\"Advertising Week\",\"image\":{\"@type\":\"ImageObject\",\"inLanguage\":\"en-US\",\"@id\":\"https:\\\/\\\/secure.gravatar.com\\\/avatar\\\/3136b4a05c15e5dac7e877b1998ec3e252a59b6da6e4b471522d944c91b71940?s=96&d=mm&r=g\",\"url\":\"https:\\\/\\\/secure.gravatar.com\\\/avatar\\\/3136b4a05c15e5dac7e877b1998ec3e252a59b6da6e4b471522d944c91b71940?s=96&d=mm&r=g\",\"contentUrl\":\"https:\\\/\\\/secure.gravatar.com\\\/avatar\\\/3136b4a05c15e5dac7e877b1998ec3e252a59b6da6e4b471522d944c91b71940?s=96&d=mm&r=g\",\"caption\":\"Advertising Week\"},\"sameAs\":[\"https:\\\/\\\/advertisingweek.com\"]}]}<\/script>\n<!-- \/ Yoast SEO Premium plugin. -->","yoast_head_json":{"title":"What Does 2026 Hold for Marketing, Creativity and AI? | AW360","robots":{"index":"index","follow":"follow","max-snippet":"max-snippet:-1","max-image-preview":"max-image-preview:large","max-video-preview":"max-video-preview:-1"},"canonical":"https:\/\/advertisingweek.com\/aw360\/news\/what-does-2026-hold-for-marketing-creativity-and-ai\/10177\/","og_locale":"en_US","og_type":"article","og_title":"What Does 2026 Hold for Marketing, Creativity and AI?","og_description":"The best experiences don\u2019t need to explain the technology behind them. They\u2019ll reflect confidence, clarity and care in how they were made.","og_url":"https:\/\/advertisingweek.com\/aw360\/news\/what-does-2026-hold-for-marketing-creativity-and-ai\/10177\/","og_site_name":"AW360","article_published_time":"2026-01-14T06:49:19+00:00","og_image":[{"width":1600,"height":900,"url":"https:\/\/advertisingweek.com\/aw360\/wp-content\/uploads\/sites\/3\/2026\/01\/What-Does-2026-Hold-for-Marketing.jpg","type":"image\/jpeg"}],"author":"Advertising Week","twitter_card":"summary_large_image","twitter_misc":{"Written by":"Advertising Week","Est. reading time":"2 minutes"},"schema":{"@context":"https:\/\/schema.org","@graph":[{"@type":"Article","@id":"https:\/\/advertisingweek.com\/aw360\/news\/what-does-2026-hold-for-marketing-creativity-and-ai\/10177\/#article","isPartOf":{"@id":"https:\/\/advertisingweek.com\/aw360\/news\/what-does-2026-hold-for-marketing-creativity-and-ai\/10177\/"},"author":{"name":"Advertising Week","@id":"https:\/\/advertisingweek.com\/aw360\/#\/schema\/person\/ae698b8b96e141836006836db70d9e69"},"headline":"What Does 2026 Hold for Marketing, Creativity and AI?","datePublished":"2026-01-14T06:49:19+00:00","mainEntityOfPage":{"@id":"https:\/\/advertisingweek.com\/aw360\/news\/what-does-2026-hold-for-marketing-creativity-and-ai\/10177\/"},"wordCount":387,"publisher":{"@id":"https:\/\/advertisingweek.com\/aw360\/#organization"},"image":{"@id":"https:\/\/advertisingweek.com\/aw360\/news\/what-does-2026-hold-for-marketing-creativity-and-ai\/10177\/#primaryimage"},"thumbnailUrl":"https:\/\/advertisingweek.com\/aw360\/wp-content\/uploads\/sites\/3\/2026\/01\/What-Does-2026-Hold-for-Marketing.jpg","keywords":["Brands + Marketers"],"articleSection":["News"],"inLanguage":"en-US"},{"@type":"WebPage","@id":"https:\/\/advertisingweek.com\/aw360\/news\/what-does-2026-hold-for-marketing-creativity-and-ai\/10177\/","url":"https:\/\/advertisingweek.com\/aw360\/news\/what-does-2026-hold-for-marketing-creativity-and-ai\/10177\/","name":"What Does 2026 Hold for Marketing, Creativity and AI? | AW360","isPartOf":{"@id":"https:\/\/advertisingweek.com\/aw360\/#website"},"primaryImageOfPage":{"@id":"https:\/\/advertisingweek.com\/aw360\/news\/what-does-2026-hold-for-marketing-creativity-and-ai\/10177\/#primaryimage"},"image":{"@id":"https:\/\/advertisingweek.com\/aw360\/news\/what-does-2026-hold-for-marketing-creativity-and-ai\/10177\/#primaryimage"},"thumbnailUrl":"https:\/\/advertisingweek.com\/aw360\/wp-content\/uploads\/sites\/3\/2026\/01\/What-Does-2026-Hold-for-Marketing.jpg","datePublished":"2026-01-14T06:49:19+00:00","breadcrumb":{"@id":"https:\/\/advertisingweek.com\/aw360\/news\/what-does-2026-hold-for-marketing-creativity-and-ai\/10177\/#breadcrumb"},"inLanguage":"en-US","potentialAction":[{"@type":"ReadAction","target":["https:\/\/advertisingweek.com\/aw360\/news\/what-does-2026-hold-for-marketing-creativity-and-ai\/10177\/"]}]},{"@type":"ImageObject","inLanguage":"en-US","@id":"https:\/\/advertisingweek.com\/aw360\/news\/what-does-2026-hold-for-marketing-creativity-and-ai\/10177\/#primaryimage","url":"https:\/\/advertisingweek.com\/aw360\/wp-content\/uploads\/sites\/3\/2026\/01\/What-Does-2026-Hold-for-Marketing.jpg","contentUrl":"https:\/\/advertisingweek.com\/aw360\/wp-content\/uploads\/sites\/3\/2026\/01\/What-Does-2026-Hold-for-Marketing.jpg","width":1600,"height":900},{"@type":"BreadcrumbList","@id":"https:\/\/advertisingweek.com\/aw360\/news\/what-does-2026-hold-for-marketing-creativity-and-ai\/10177\/#breadcrumb","itemListElement":[{"@type":"ListItem","position":1,"name":"Home","item":"https:\/\/advertisingweek.com\/aw360\/"},{"@type":"ListItem","position":2,"name":"What Does 2026 Hold for Marketing, Creativity and AI?"}]},{"@type":"WebSite","@id":"https:\/\/advertisingweek.com\/aw360\/#website","url":"https:\/\/advertisingweek.com\/aw360\/","name":"AW360","description":"","publisher":{"@id":"https:\/\/advertisingweek.com\/aw360\/#organization"},"potentialAction":[{"@type":"SearchAction","target":{"@type":"EntryPoint","urlTemplate":"https:\/\/advertisingweek.com\/aw360\/?s={search_term_string}"},"query-input":{"@type":"PropertyValueSpecification","valueRequired":true,"valueName":"search_term_string"}}],"inLanguage":"en-US"},{"@type":"Organization","@id":"https:\/\/advertisingweek.com\/aw360\/#organization","name":"AW360","url":"https:\/\/advertisingweek.com\/aw360\/","logo":{"@type":"ImageObject","inLanguage":"en-US","@id":"https:\/\/advertisingweek.com\/aw360\/#\/schema\/logo\/image\/","url":"https:\/\/advertisingweek.com\/aw360\/wp-content\/uploads\/sites\/3\/2026\/07\/AW360_Logo_2023_FullColor.png","contentUrl":"https:\/\/advertisingweek.com\/aw360\/wp-content\/uploads\/sites\/3\/2026\/07\/AW360_Logo_2023_FullColor.png","width":1906,"height":849,"caption":"AW360"},"image":{"@id":"https:\/\/advertisingweek.com\/aw360\/#\/schema\/logo\/image\/"}},{"@type":"Person","@id":"https:\/\/advertisingweek.com\/aw360\/#\/schema\/person\/ae698b8b96e141836006836db70d9e69","name":"Advertising Week","image":{"@type":"ImageObject","inLanguage":"en-US","@id":"https:\/\/secure.gravatar.com\/avatar\/3136b4a05c15e5dac7e877b1998ec3e252a59b6da6e4b471522d944c91b71940?s=96&d=mm&r=g","url":"https:\/\/secure.gravatar.com\/avatar\/3136b4a05c15e5dac7e877b1998ec3e252a59b6da6e4b471522d944c91b71940?s=96&d=mm&r=g","contentUrl":"https:\/\/secure.gravatar.com\/avatar\/3136b4a05c15e5dac7e877b1998ec3e252a59b6da6e4b471522d944c91b71940?s=96&d=mm&r=g","caption":"Advertising Week"},"sameAs":["https:\/\/advertisingweek.com"]}]}},"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/advertisingweek.com\/aw360\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/10177","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/advertisingweek.com\/aw360\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/advertisingweek.com\/aw360\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/advertisingweek.com\/aw360\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/users\/7"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/advertisingweek.com\/aw360\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=10177"}],"version-history":[{"count":2,"href":"https:\/\/advertisingweek.com\/aw360\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/10177\/revisions"}],"predecessor-version":[{"id":17167,"href":"https:\/\/advertisingweek.com\/aw360\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/10177\/revisions\/17167"}],"wp:featuredmedia":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/advertisingweek.com\/aw360\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media\/10178"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/advertisingweek.com\/aw360\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=10177"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/advertisingweek.com\/aw360\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=10177"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/advertisingweek.com\/aw360\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/tags?post=10177"},{"taxonomy":"topics","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/advertisingweek.com\/aw360\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/topics?post=10177"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}