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At Cannes Lions 2025, AI goes from buzzword to benchmark

The trend: AI is no longer just a buzzword on the Croisette—it’s the centerpiece of Cannes Lions 2025. Executives across the industry expect AI to be scrutinized not for its novelty but for its real-world utility.

  • Amy Fenton, co-president of MarketCast, said she expects to see a shift “from hype to practical utility in the creative world.”
  • Questions remain about whether AI will support or supplant creative talent, and Cannes is where those debates will intensify. Grant Gudgel, SVP of marketing at Verve, said the mood has shifted from awe to scrutiny: “This year’s focus will examine how these tools are applied in the real world,” with attention on performance, transparency, and media quality.
  • Others pointed to AI’s expanding use beyond content creation. Jason Downie, global CRO at Making Science, expects Google's recent momentum around AI-driven search to stoke deeper discussion on how marketers can apply AI to drive efficiency without sacrificing creativity.
  • For Davide Rosamilia, VP of product at ID5, the excitement centers around AI powering new products instead of dressing up old ones—“a shift from AI-washing to AI-built,” as he put it.

Why it matters: The mood at Cannes reflects a broader industry transition. AI is moving past experimentation and into phases of real implementation. This transition brings with it more questions: How do marketers evaluate performance without sacrificing creative quality? Can transparency and accountability keep pace with rapid automation? And perhaps most critically, can AI enhance human output without diminishing it?

  • As Seedtag UK managing director Marko Johns pointed out, “the fine line of balance” remains elusive in a still-fragile AI ecosystem. Attendees are expected to dig deeper into not just what AI can do, but what it should do—and who it ultimately benefits.
  • Fabric Media founder and CEO Jason Damata expects to hear plenty of media-tech pairings: “AI with buzzwords like optimization, yield, ROAS, automation.” That emphasis suggests that utility—not just novelty—is driving interest.

Our take: Cannes 2025 is poised to mark a turning point in how AI is discussed in creative industries.

Instead of posturing or fearmongering, executives are hungry for proof that AI can deliver responsibly, at scale, and with a human touch. The conversations won’t just be about tech but about values: transparency, creativity, accountability, and impact.

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