Drawing insights from big data was named as a top challenge for 46 percent of brand leader respondents

LIONS STATE OF CREATIVITY SURVEY, 2021

It’s no surprise that a year of living through screens has increased our need for more personal, empathic communication. The people have spoken. For brands, this means leaning into the very real opportunity of AI to create natural and authentic conversations; the sorts that we’ve all missed in the real world. Many questions remain though. Can - and should - an algorithm ever really replace a more meaningful human interaction? Will creative, personalised communication succeed in a cookieless world? What right do brands have to be “personal” and what counts as crossing the line? Cannes Lions has seen incredible examples of creativity that’s pushed the boundaries of what we thought was possible with a few datasets, some insightful analytics and a big bold idea. As data-driven creativity continues to evolve at pace, we’ll explore what kind of work we can expect to see and the questions we need to ask ourselves. We’ll see how savvy brands are integrating AI at all touchpoints and using data to inform the kind of category-defying work that wins Lions. As ever, we’ll also look to some of the world’s unexpected specialists for advice and inspiration.