Awards face verification challenge as AI lowers production costs

Valerio Stallone argues that the recent decline in Cannes Lions submissions cannot be reduced to stricter rules alone. He links the shift to generative systems that lower the cost and time required to produce award entries — reducing barriers to production and increasing volume — which forces institutions like Cannes Lions to invest more in verification and documentation. The essay describes a broader structural shift from a 'production economy' to a 'selection economy': as creative output becomes cheaper, the primary challenge moves from creating work to distinguishing credible, well-documented, and effective contributions. Stallone notes the DM9 case and the growing importance of effectiveness criteria (citing Effie) as symptoms of this change, and argues the phenomenon affects universities, publishers and businesses as well as the creative industry.