Observed Signal · Aug 25, 2026 · Commentary · Source: The Drum · Impact: 2/5 · Sentiment: Positive
Sienne Veit: AI’s Value Is What It Actually Solves
Sienne Veit, jury president for The Drum Awards Festival Digital Experience and founder of Invisible Stuff, argues that AI’s real value lies in solving meaningful problems rather than being used for show. She predicts AI will quickly become invisible infrastructure within digital experiences and says judges should prioritise creativity, usefulness and outcomes for users when assessing work. Veit highlights consumer empowerment, the challenges of trust and longevity for brands, and the importance of repairability, resale and circularity. She encourages teams to enter awards to share work that raises industry standards and inspires further innovation.
Industry perspective from an awards jury leader on practical AI in digital experience influences creative standards and evaluation, but it is commentary rather than a platform, policy or technical release.
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Key Takeaways & Evidence Grounding
- Sienne Veit is the Digital Experience jury president for The Drum Awards Festival and is affiliated with Invisible Stuff.
- Veit told The Drum that AI is only as good as the problem it actually solves and predicted AI will become infrastructure across digital services.
- The article includes an example where AI built into cameras sorted confiscated shells by type so they could be returned to the correct coastline.
- The Drum Festival brings together nine distinct awards across advertising, design, digital, experiential, media, PR, social, content and creator marketing.
- The webpage HTML indicates a publication date of 2026-08-25.
Connected Companies & Entities
2 Entities mapped“Having worked at John Lewis, Veit is acutely aware of how fast fortunes can turn....”
“She points to the collapse of once-dominant names and the rockier fortunes of retailers like Debenhams as a wider lesson: scale and heritage...”
Ontology Mapping & Concepts
Related Market Signals & Shifts
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Microsoft VP: AI Transformation Is Human Transformation
Mascha Driessen, Microsoft’s regional vice president and a returning juror on The Drum Awards Festival Digital Experience jury, argues that AI transformation is primarily a business, cultural and human change rather than just a technical one. She advises brands to start with customer problems, focus on purposeful experimentation and prioritize trust, inclusion and responsible adoption. Driessen says winners will be those who apply AI meaningfully to remove friction and create better experiences, and she emphasises leadership that fosters psychological safety and empathy. The piece appears in The Drum ahead of The Drum Awards Festival, which recognises digital experience work.
AI Makes Mediocre Creative Easier, Great Ideas Matter
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Jason Williams: Flashy AI Falls Short in Creativity
Jason Williams, creative director at Ingram Micro’s in-house agency and a juror on The Drum B2B Awards' Creative Aces jury, argues that AI’s fast, flashy outputs are often derivative and cannot replace human critical thinking and original idea generation. Drawing on a 30-year career creating campaigns for technology brands, Williams says creative principles endure even as tools change, and he advocates investing in process (symbolised by a yellow pad and #2 pencil) and sustained brand building rather than short-term shortcuts. He warns that pausing brand investment under commercial pressure risks losing a brand’s voice, and advises B2B marketers to avoid treating B2B like consumer marketing. Williams’ comments appear in The Drum ahead of The Drum B2B Awards entry deadline (July 23).
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