The Future of Advertising: When Anyone Can Create, Who Wins? - AFM Creator Studio

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Overview

In this session from the CMO & CAIO Inspired Summit at Syon Park, London, in October 2026, Anthony Smith, Danilo McGarry and Simone Ferretti of AFM Creator Studio explore what happens when campaigns that once needed weeks, large budgets and whole production teams can be created at unprecedented speed. Danilo opens by acknowledging the pressure many marketing leaders feel from boards who expect AI to deliver more, faster and for less.

Simone then gives a live demonstration of an AI creative workflow, generating dozens of image variations from a few brand inputs, localising characters for different markets, swapping products and camera angles and animating stills into personalised video. Anthony closes with lessons from his work on trailers for a major podcast, arguing that AI works best as a tool to elevate ideas when it is combined with human storytelling, sound and design choices.

Key takeaways

  • AI can remove the time and budget constraints that force big creative ideas to be cut down, so teams can test far more variations before committing.
  • Not every output will be usable; generating many variations and keeping the best fifth can still produce a strong set of campaign assets.
  • Brand guidelines, colours, logos and characters can be built into the workflow to keep generated images and video consistent.
  • Bringing these skills in-house, rather than leaving them with an agency, helps marketing teams build lasting capability and reduces fear of being replaced.
  • The fundamentals still matter most: compelling stories, emotion and an understanding of human behaviour are what separate great work from AI slop.

Watch the full session on YouTube: The Future of Advertising: When Anyone Can Create, Who Wins?

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