Cannes 2026: Why Connected Experiences, AI and Better Measurement Will Define the Next Era of Marketing

At our Outernet Villa Brunch during Cannes Lions 2026, Outernet’s CEO Philip O’Ferrall brought together industry leaders, including Emmanuel Ogidan, Senior Director, supply monetisation UK, MENA and Global Accounts for Freewheel, Amir Malik, Managing Director, Alvarez and Marsal and Vicki Sutherland, Chief Growth Officer at Outernet to discuss one of the biggest questions facing marketers today: how can brands drive meaningful impact in an increasingly fragmented media landscape?

With audiences spread across more channels than ever, marketers face growing pressure to demonstrate ROI while delivering seamless, engaging consumer experiences. Our panel explored how AI, connected media and experiential marketing are reshaping the future of the industry.

Navigating fragmentation with connected thinking

Opening the discussion, Emmanuel highlighted that media fragmentation remains one of the biggest challenges for CMOs. While the number of channels continues to grow, the expectation to prove campaign effectiveness has only intensified.

Rather than viewing media through individual channel silos, brands need to adopt a connected approach that reflects how consumers actually engage with content. Understanding the end-to-end customer journey and how different touchpoints work together, is becoming essential to driving stronger outcomes.

AI is transforming marketing at scale

The conversation quickly turned to AI and its growing influence on marketing and media.

Amir explained that generative AI has fundamentally changed the speed and efficiency of campaign creation, with enormous economic value expected to be generated across the marketing sector. However, while AI is accelerating production and enabling greater personalisation, successful adoption still depends on human oversight to ensure creativity, quality and brand integrity remain at the forefront.

Looking ahead, AI should be viewed as an enabler, not a replacement, allowing marketing teams to spend less time on repetitive tasks and more time developing strategic and creative ideas.

Experiences don't end when the event does.

Vicki explored how brands are increasingly combining live experiences, social amplification and cross-channel data to maximise campaign impact.

At Outernet, immersive live experiences often provide the catalyst for wider campaigns. Those moments are then extended through social content and strengthened by data captured across multiple channels, allowing brands to build a clearer picture of performance and ultimately demonstrate stronger ROI.

The key takeaway: today's most effective campaigns don't rely on a single channel. They connect physical and digital experiences to create lasting engagement.

Three priorities for the year ahead

As the session concluded, each panellist shared the single most important area brands should focus on over the next 12 months:

• Amir: Use AI to free up talent, giving teams more time for creativity and strategic thinking.

• Vicki: Create fewer campaigns but make them more impactful through stronger creative and better integration.

• Emmanuel: Harness AI to deliver more relevant creative across connected consumer journeys, tailoring content to each platform while maintaining a consistent brand experience.

Looking forward

Despite the Cannes sunshine encouraging an early finish to the panel, the conversations continued well into the afternoon as guests networked and exchanged ideas.

One message was clear throughout the discussion: the future of marketing isn't about adding more channels. It's about creating smarter, more connected experiences powered by AI, strengthened by data, and designed around how consumers actually engage with brands. Those that successfully combine creativity, technology and measurable outcomes will be best positioned to drive growth in the years ahead.