‘AI hasn’t changed the principles of marketing’: Through the hype, marketers vie for the human touch

At CES, what’s happening in the hotel suites above the conference is just as interesting as the panels happening below—perhaps even more so.

But corralling execs to get to those meetings is no small feat, which is probably why companies like Netflix, Google, Instacart, Yahoo, and UTA typically opt to conduct business in private Aria rooms upstairs. If you’re already in the Aria, where much of the marketing programming is, why not meet there behind closed doors? The crowds at the elevators throughout Tuesday and Wednesday, where people waving company-branded paddles jockeyed for executives’ attention, were just one reminder of the wheeling and dealing afoot.

In the public eye, the AI announcements continued apace this week. Lenovo’s keynote at Sphere on Tuesday took nearly two hours to get through all of the AI-related news, where wild graphics helped keep people’s attention. (Shout-out to Clippy, who popped up during a section of the keynote highlighting a partnership with Microsoft.) At one point, a pattern of phones stacked together in a cylinder almost mimicked a black hole, a trippy image that made it all the more clear why bands like Phish are staples at the venue.

Even with the hate for some AI wearables, companies like Lenovo are still bullish on them. Throughout the keynote, Lenovo showcased new wearables, like glasses and a pendant. Execs repeatedly noted that listening and recording by the devices would be done with consumer permission, which served as a subtle nod to the sometimes-wary consumer sentiment around wearables.

Even as AI dominated conversations, consumer control and the importance of the human touch have been a continued drumbeat.

“AI hasn’t changed the principles of marketing,” Allison Stransky, VP of corporate marketing and CMO, Samsung Electronics America, said during a panel I moderated on Tuesday centered on AI and creators. “We’re all humans. We’re all still consumers, and as the brand, I still want to reach everyone relevantly at the right time. So AI is helping us make that more efficient and easier and faster.”

In other words, AI is a method to making human connections faster, not a replacement for human authenticity. “We still love creators for the authenticity, for your connection with your audience, with all of that magic,” Stransky said. “Now AI is going to help bring us closer together in a better, more relevant, faster way, but the principles are all still true at their roots.”

Other notable tidbits from the conference as we approach the halfway point:

• Sport Beach is going beyond Cannes. Stagwell’s one-day pop-up at CES on Tuesday is just the start: the agency is turning Sport Beach into its own company. Given the crazy sports year ahead with the Super Bowl, the World Cup, and the Olympics, it should be a busy first year.
• Yahoo’s got new agentic AI capabilities within its DSP.
• In “all-things-are-smart-now” news, Lego debuted smart bricks.

Spotted: Netflix’s cafe at the Aria had a marquee that read, “Mentally, I’m still in the Upside Down.” Post-holiday, aren’t we all?