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Top agency and production bosses from around the world, including TBWA\u2019s Erin Riley, Dentsu\u2019s Jessica Tamsedge, and DDB\u2019s Priya Patel dig into the year-to-date with LBB\u2019s Brittney Rigby. Has it unfolded as expected? What\u2019s been the biggest surprise? And how have client expectations shifted in their markets?<\/strong><\/p>\n A cost-of-living crisis, political instability, and the rapid escalation of artificial intelligence\u2019s capability: 2025 was always going to be turbulent.<\/p>\n But as CEOs from around the world look back on the first half of the year, they observe it has been downright volatile — and marketers have responded unevenly, while expecting a greater return on investment.<\/p>\n Layer the advertising industry\u2019s own upheaval —\u00a0Omnicom\u2019s pursual of IPG<\/a>,\u00a0WPP boss Mark Read stepping down<\/a>, agencies restructuring and consolidating as client budgets shrink, a spate of independent agencies recalibrating some markets — and it is clear industry bosses are facing enormous pressure to deliver. Accordingly, some don\u2019t understand why brands are still settling for creative safety and sameness, and the industry is still entertaining a conversation about its own death.<\/p>\n \u200bTBWA<\/a>\u2019s global CEO\u00a0Erin Riley<\/a>\u00a0\u2014 who was\u00a0elevated to the top job a year ago<\/a>, following\u00a0Troy Ruhanen\u2019s move to lead Omnicom Advertising Group<\/a>\u00a0\u2014 said while she expected 2025 to be turbulent — after all, TBWA is The Disruption Company; it has \u201ccome to expect disruption\u201d — \u201cwhat we didn\u2019t expect was the scale of disruption and utter unpredictability.\u201d<\/p>\n For\u00a0OLIVER<\/a>\u2019s UK CEO\u00a0Amina Folarin<\/a>, the challenges have been enough to dampen even the most can-do spirit. \u201cWe started the year with optimism, but with clients\u2019 budgets reducing and increasing pressure to deliver more for less, you definitely get this sense there is a slowdown.\u201d<\/p>\n But there are greenshoots.\u00a0Katy Hornaday<\/a>\u00a0is the\u00a0newly-appointed<\/a>\u00a0CEO of\u00a0BarkleyOKPR<\/a>, one of the largest indie full-service agencies in the US. She said while briefs and budgets have slowed in response to tariffs and macroeconomic uncertainty, there are opportunities. Many US clients have seen the downturn as \u201ctheir opportunity to be aggressive, take big swings, and make plans to lead their category.\u201d Still, briefs and budgets slowed in response to tariffs and macroeconomic uncertainty, defying hopes of a post-election rebound.<\/p>\n Erin told LBB of a recent trip to Los Angeles\u2019 Getty Museum, where she \u201cwas captivated, moved, and at times astonished by work created over 200 years ago with oil on canvas.\u201d<\/p>\n \u201cThe power of human creativity is boundless and enduring,\u201d she said. \u201cI don’t understand the almost-morbid fascination with predicting its demise. I am much more interested in celebrating it and using it to move markets and society forward.\u201d<\/p>\n She added, \u201cBrands’ reactions to this scale of disruption has been uneven. Some have maintained or increased investment to exploit or protect against market forces, while others have been more conservative awaiting more certainty.\u201d<\/p>\n Erin is surprised so many brands are still \u201cdrowning in a sea of sameness\u201d when creative distinction is proven to drive commercial success. \u201cThere\u2019s a real disconnect between the urgency clients feel and the solutions they\u2019re defaulting to.\u201d<\/p>\n \u200bCheil UK<\/a>\u00a0CEO\u00a0Chris Camacho<\/a>\u00a0echoed that sentiment; he can\u2019t comprehend \u201chow safe so much of the industry still feels\u201d.<\/p>\n \u201cFor all the noise around bravery, I see far too many brands and agencies stuck in the middle,\u201d he added. \u201cOver-researching. Over-editing. Under-shooting.<\/p>\n \u201cSafe work doesn\u2019t move people. It doesn\u2019t drive sales. And it definitely doesn\u2019t get talked about. We need more urgent, unfiltered creativity.\u201d<\/p>\n If there are opportunities to stand out, some leaders are wondering why more talented executives aren\u2019t seizing them.<\/p>\n \u200bAtomic London<\/a>\u00a0CEO boss\u00a0Jon Goulding<\/a>\u00a0is most shocked more leaders haven\u2019t capitalised on the stagnancy by setting up independents. \u201cThe biggest surprise so far this year has been how few \u2018intrapreneurs\u2019 have broken free from the holdcos,\u201d he said.<\/p>\n \u201cThere\u2019s been a disappointing lack of interesting or modern-looking agency start-ups this year. And with such pressure on the holdcos to simplify, consolidate, and cut free any financial drag anchors, now is a perfect time to offer them an attractive management buy-out if you\u2019ve got the ambition and vision for life as an independent.<\/p>\n \u201cWe need more start-ups in new spaces for the overall health of the industry and if you don\u2019t do it now, it\u2019ll be a hell of a lot harder once the turbulence settles down again.\u201d<\/p>\n That hasn\u2019t been a problem in Australia. In the first eight months of the year, executives from\u00a0an independent<\/a>,\u00a0The Monkeys<\/a>, and\u00a0Droga5 and CHEP<\/a>\u00a0have started agencies named Hellions, Kerfuffle, and Princess, respectively, joining a ballooning group of Aussie indies.<\/p>\n CEOs across the regions agree marketers are demanding a clearer return on investment.<\/p>\n \u200bDDB Group AUNZ<\/a>\u00a0CEO\u00a0Priya Patel<\/a>\u00a0described 2025 as a \u201cchallenging market\u201d characterised by tight budgets, a sharper focus on marketing ROI, and \u201cno shortage of pitches.\u201d<\/p>\n \u201cMost clients are looking for partners who understand their business, can work smoothly across different disciplines, and deliver measurable outcomes,\u201d she said.<\/p>\n \u201cThey want fresh thinking that respects the market specifics without overcomplicating things. At the same time, the bar for commercial accountability is higher than ever. With tighter budgets and increased scrutiny, clients expect clear proof of value \u2013 not just big ideas.<\/p>\n \u201cThat means pitches need to show not only creative excellence but also a clear pathway to business impact, whether through performance, brand growth, or innovation.\u201d<\/p>\n This is true the world over. While India is a market still ripe with potential,\u00a0Leo India<\/a>\u00a0CEO\u00a0Amitesh Rao<\/a>\u00a0agreed with his peers in other markets that \u201cclients need ever-improving ROI across the entire marketing funnel.\u201d<\/p>\n Marketers are on the hunt for partners that can help them navigate transformation, according to OLIVER. Amina leads the UK business to build brands\u2019 in-house teams and explained increased budgetary pressures have led to \u201csharper, more focused briefing\u201d and an openness to transforming the marketing function.<\/p>\n \u201cWe\u2019ve seen deeper client relationships as our clients need long lasting partners to help them deliver.\u201d<\/p>\n Chris at Cheil — which began as Samsung\u2019s in-house agency and now works for other clients while remaining owned by Samsung — was on the same page, arguing clients want their agencies to be \u201cless supplier, more partner in transformation.\u201d Their expectations have climbed, \u201cand rightly so\u201d, and they\u2019re not willing to compromise.<\/p>\n \u201cSpeed without compromise. Strategy that drives outcomes. Creative that earns attention and proves its worth. This isn\u2019t about budget cuts, it\u2019s about accountability. The fluff is gone,\u201d said Chris.<\/p>\n That shouldn\u2019t cause fear within agencies, he argued, because \u201cthe beauty of that pressure is it raises the bar for everyone\u201d and it means the market is primed for strategic work that is \u201ccommercially credible and creatively ambitious.\u201d<\/p>\n \u200bDonnalyn Smith<\/a>, the global boss of experience agency\u00a0Momentum Worldwide<\/a>, agreed clients are \u201casking smarter questions, pushing for provable value, and demanding that creativity and technology serve a bigger purpose\u201d. From a pitch perspective, she observed many Q2 RFPs \u201cincluded generative workflows as table stakes\u201d, which wasn\u2019t the case even six months ago.<\/p>\n \u201cWe\u2019re seeing compressed timelines, condensed scopes and a new business cycle that rewards agility over polish,\u201d Donnalyn said.<\/p>\n \u201cThe pitch isn\u2019t dead\u2014but it\u2019s different. We\u2019re winning work in weeks, not months, and the agencies that can\u2019t show up with clear thinking and executable systems from day one are getting left behind.\u201d<\/p>\n While her business expected clients to pull back this year, \u201cinstead, what we saw was more nuanced: brands aren\u2019t hesitating, they\u2019re recalibrating.\u201d<\/p>\n Fellow experience agency CEO,\u00a0Jonathan Emmins<\/a>\u00a0at\u00a0Amplify<\/a>, noted that while marketing budget growth has slowed in the UK, it\u2019s still on the rise. The first half was significant for the business; it was\u00a0acquired by Common Interest<\/a>, and \u201csaw an uplift in brand experience investment”.<\/p>\n Almost every CEO interviewed mentioned artificial intelligence, though opinions differ on whether adoption is widespread or still \u201cPowerPoint fantasy.\u201d<\/p>\n Momentum Worldwide\u2019s Donnalyn said adoption has \u201caccelerated faster than we predicted,\u201d while\u00a0Dentsu\u2019s UK&I<\/a>\u00a0CEO,\u00a0Jessica Tamedge<\/a>, expected to see more systemic industry adoption, and Cheil\u2019s Chris is similarly concerned it\u2019s still the stuff of \u201cPowerPoint fantas[ies]\u201d because \u201cbrands are excited but paralysed.\u201d<\/p>\n \u201cStop talking, start building,\u201d Chris said, adding Cheil has embedded the tech across digital and retail work, \u201cfrom LLM-powered content optimisation to AI-curated product journeys. Our approach is build, test, break, optimise.\u201d<\/p>\n Post-production house\u00a0OkayStudio\u2019<\/a>s\u00a0Nikolaj Belzer<\/a>\u00a0doesn\u2019t understand why the reaction to AI is still so \u201cbinary\u201d, focused on \u201cthe fear, the fantasy, when the reality is much more nuanced.\u201d The boss of the editing, VFX, and colour business, which has offices in London and Berlin, argued the conversation\u2019s flatness is reflected in the creative output.<\/p>\n \u201cIt is either seen as a total solution or an existential threat, and the work made is accordingly un-nuanced, which is the exact opposite of what creative work is supposed to be,\u201d he said.<\/p>\n \u201cNeither is true. Historically that has never been the case. From the printing press to the telephone, from nonlinear editing to digital filmmaking, these shifts have never killed creativity. They have redirected and expanded it.\u201d<\/p>\n Late last year,\u00a0Adobe chose Dentsu<\/a>\u00a0as its global creative agency of record, and in January launched\u00a0Adobe GenStudio dentsu+<\/a>, an AI-powered content offering. That\u2019s given the holdco a \u201cfast start\u201d in the space, Jessica said, \u201cenabling us not only to build the Adobe brand at scale but also to extend this technology to other clients.\u201d<\/p>\n Amitesh at Leo India has noticed \u201cvarying degrees of adoption\u201d in the realm of tech transformation.<\/p>\n \u201cInterestingly though, I am seeing those at the front end of the adoption cycle beginning to acknowledge transformation as an essential enabler,\u201d he said, \u201crather than a magic wand or a substitute for fundamentally strong strategic thinking and transformational creativity. In some ways this is a natural cycle, but it\u2019s happening sooner than I expected.\u201d<\/p>\n Jessica believes \u201cthe adoption of AI across the wider business for admin, insight and connection has felt slower,\u201d but Momentum Worldwide\u2019s Donnalyn has seen AI transform a \u201cfrom conversation piece to production backbone\u201d. At the end of 2024, AI was an \u201cexploratory brief\u201d; now it\u2019s \u201ca central line item in nearly every pitch\u201d and scope of work, she said, adding the best brands are using AI to design clever customer experiences blending \u201cperformance with personalisation\u201d.<\/p>\n The key, though, is applying it with \u201cintention that can\u2019t be automated\u201d and using it to preserve, not replace, emotion. Marketers \u201cwant a thinking partner that expands creativity and systems that make them more human, not less,\u201d Donnalyn said. \u201cThe best clients are embracing AI where it creates capacity for human creativity, not where it replaces it.<\/p>\n \u201cWhat hasn\u2019t happened yet, and should, is accountability around AI ownership and creative IP. That conversation is coming. We\u2019re getting ready for it now.\u201d<\/p>\n Jessica didn\u2019t expect the acceptance of AI influencers like Mia Zelu, who debuted at Wimbledon. The reveal that she was fake was one thing, but \u201cthe continued engagement with her as a creator after audiences understood she wasn\u2019t real\u201d was another entirely.<\/p>\n \u201cEqually surprising has been the rapid rise of VTuber fandoms,\u201d she added of virtual YouTube creators.<\/p>\n \u201cWhile VTubers are real people, their use of avatars for anonymity has created an unexpected sense of authenticity, allowing them to express themselves more freely and build deeper, more genuine connections with their audiences.\u201d<\/p>\n London-based Jessica noted the combination of a new UK government, US tariff announcements, and \u201cthe launch of endless gen AI product threatening to dethrone the creative industry as we know it\u201d has made for a lively year.<\/p>\n \u201cOn a less positive note, it\u2019s been disappointing to see sustainability slip down the industry news agenda,\u201d she said.<\/p>\n \u201cIn the UK, however, the progress being made in regulating less healthy foods gives me hope that we can continue the sustainability conversation in a constructive and nuanced way.<\/p>\n “We don\u2019t need to take an absolutist stance, such as opposing all advertising linked to fossil fuels in order to drive meaningful progress in this space.\u201d<\/p>\n For all the turbulence, CEOs agree on one thing: the opportunity is there for brands willing to be bold, and volatility is not a reason to retreat. If anything, it proves the agencies that win will be those that pair commercial accountability with creative memorability.<\/p>\n While acknowledging \u201cvolatility\u201d and client caution, Cheil\u2019s Chris said those conditions have been \u201cenergising\u201d in a way. \u201cWe\u2019ve had to fight harder for every opportunity, challenge ourselves to work smarter, and cut through complexity with clarity. The market has been slow to decide and quick to change direction, but that\u2019s exactly why we\u2019ve doubled down.\u201d<\/p>\n Clients need \u201cwork that is creatively and culturally potent,\u201d added OkayStudio\u2019s Nikolaj. The post house is expanding to New York and Los Angeles to get more proximate with clients and creatives in the US, and said being able to stay nimble, act quickly, and stick \u201cclose to our values\u201d is serving his business well.<\/p>\n Priya is buoyed by the industry\u2019s resilience and clients who are \u201cwilling to back bold, smart ideas \u2013 especially when there\u2019s a clear connection to business results.\u201d So is TBWA\u2019s global leader, Erin.<\/p>\n \u201cI am heartened by how many of our CMOs are truly seeking smart, bold creativity.\u201d<\/p>\nA Sea of Sameness<\/strong><\/h3>\n
Where Are the Modern Indies?<\/strong><\/h3>\n
Client Demands Rising, \u201cAnd Rightly So\u201d<\/strong><\/h3>\n
AI Adoption: The Gap Between Hype and Reality<\/strong><\/h3>\n
The possibilities are \u201cexciting and maybe a little scary\u201d because the industry is still in its AI \u201cwild west period,\u201d according to the LA-based\u00a0Alex Cohn<\/a>, head of content and partner at\u00a0FIN Studios<\/a>. He said the tech advancements mean clients are mixing and matching models to deliver more assets on a tighter budget.<\/strong><\/h4>\n
\u201cIt isn\u2019t new that brands are bringing agency and production resources in-house, that agencies are creating production capabilities, and that some production companies are acting as creative agencies, but now with the help of AI, we are seeing this type of mix-and-match more frequently.\u201d<\/strong><\/h4>\n
A Backslide on the Good Stuff?<\/strong><\/h3>\n
Focus is Big, Bold, Brand-Building Ideas<\/strong><\/h3>\n