Observed Signal · Apr 3, 2026 · Panel Discussion · Source: marketecture.tv · Impact: 2/5 · Sentiment: Positive
Agencies Discuss Adapting to AI at Marketecture Live
At Marketecture Live in New York City, a panel led by Bob Lord (President, Horizon Media), Obele Brown-West (President, Colle McVoy) and Mike Shields (Founder, Next in Media) examined how advertising agencies must adapt to rapid AI adoption. Panelists said AI brings both confusion and opportunity, but legacy technology stacks and siloed systems are the main barriers to progress. They argued the future will be platform-based, not siloed, and that AI will scale execution rather than replace human creativity. The discussion stressed upskilling existing talent over wholesale replacement, evolving agency business models, rising legal and transparency concerns, and the reconvergence of creative and media capabilities.
Industry-relevant discussion showing how agencies must adapt to AI (legacy tech barriers, talent upskilling, business-model change), but it is a conference panel rather than a major platform policy or technical release.
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Key Takeaways & Evidence Grounding
- The panel took place at Marketecture Live in New York City and featured Bob Lord (President, Horizon Media), Obele Brown-West (President, Colle McVoy) and Mike Shields (Founder, Next in Media).
- Panelists identified legacy technology systems as the biggest barrier to AI-driven progress in agencies.
- Panelists argued AI will scale execution but will not replace human creativity.
- The discussion emphasized upskilling existing talent over replacing employees and warned that agency business models must evolve.
- Panelists raised rising legal and transparency concerns and predicted a platform-based (not siloed) future with creative and media reconverging.
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POSSIBLE 2026: Industry Experts Discuss AI Trends
At POSSIBLE 2026 in Miami, Digiday conducted interviews with agency and brand executives about the practical impact of generative AI on marketing while emphasizing the need to stay human. The conference, headed by Christian Muche and owned by The Hyve Group, surfaced recurring themes: pragmatic uses of AI for measurement and efficiency, talent and hiring implications, economic uncertainty, and maintaining emotional/creative connections with audiences. Executives interviewed include Geico’s Katie Klumper (on using AI to find and retain talent), 1440 co-founder Tim Huelskamp (on neutral news and fact‑checking), Marketcast CMO Kerel Cooper (on AI to speed data crunching without losing human insight), media veteran Alan Schanzer, CROING founder Alejandra Salazar and Maybelline New York president Yasmin Dastmalchi (on authentic Latin consumer engagement). Digiday notes a second installment will feature conversations with Christian Muche, Hyve Group CEO Mark Shashoua and other industry execs.
Marketers Adopt AI; Guardrails and Job Concerns Persist
Marketers and agencies are increasingly using AI across marketing workflows to speed brainstorms, scale creative ideas and support business wins, but formal guardrails remain fluid. Agencies are pushing company-wide AI adoption without universal rules separating machine output from human creativity. 72andSunny’s global CEO Evin Shutt discussed the agency’s evolving, conversational approach on the Digiday Podcast. The rise of AI-created roles — such as AI art director, prompt engineer and chief AI officer — coexists with concerns about AI replacing entry-level positions, a point raised by recent graduate Isaiah Clay. The piece is published as a Digiday podcast article and reflects industry adoption trends and workforce implications.
Bob Lord Urges Agency Transparency and AI Reinvention
Bob Lord, president of Horizon Media Holdings, delivered a keynote at the Advertising Research Foundation’s Audience X Science conference arguing that traditional agency business models are antiquated and lack transparency. Lord said agencies must redesign around performance alignment, clear disclosure of platform and data fees, and explainability in AI models; Horizon discloses technology fees and charges a Blu fee for its AI platform. Forrester’s Jay Pattisall warned that emerging agentic media buying could increase opacity even as it reduces intermediary hops and fees. A separate report from Keen Decision Systems found 44% of advertisers plan to in-house more media planning, and that brands are testing advertising within generative-AI interfaces. The briefing also notes industry product and funding news: Dentsu launched a Global Media Planner (powered by Lumen), and new AI-native agency Multiply raised $9.5 million.
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