This week I was down at MAD//Fest again. As an event full of people from the marketing and PR industry it is one I enjoy, something completely different from my usual fare.

Most of my year I spend time at collections conferences, financial conferences with rooms full of people talking about numbers… customers yes, but still back to the numbers. In fact I suspect many may be quite happy to say ‘yes I am quite proud of my spreadsheet ability’ (I know I would… lol).

MAD//Fest London is not that room.

It is a festival built by and for creative people. Designers, marketers, advertisers, brand strategists and cultural commentators, they are all there. These folks spend most of there time figuring out how people work, how to make things resonate, get people engaged, to find the cultural moment and design around it.

It is not we don’t to it, but it is a different muscle, and as is clear from the event, one they work out on a lot. Frankly they are really very good at it and is exactly why I keep coming back. There is always stuff to watch and learn. So for this year, here are the themes that stuck with me.

The AI Backlash. There was definite pushback in the room against AI and AI hype. It felt different to last year. Yes people are still talking about AI, how it can be transformative, but when there is cheering when it is said AI cannot do creative… you get the sense there is a vocal resistance movement building.

The message… you still need creative people. Humans are a must have to create ideas that haven’t been thought of yet… just get AI to do the mundane stuff.

AI raises the bar of mediocre. AI is great. Great at good enough, but not great at brilliant. It excels at writing an average ad, that generate generic copy or design, but to generate that unique moment of impact, it struggles.

AI raises the floor, not the ceiling….

And, now everyone can do it, the public can tell, and spot it’s AI. To stand out we now need to be better, be unique. The message, human quirkiness is in demand, a skill that have maybe been under valued, but now and in the future will be in high demand.

A polarisation of content and talent. Of course we can’t all be in the top 1-10% for everything, and despite the whoops and cheers, good enough is 90% of what is produced…

This will likely mean more polarisation between good and average talent, the best ‘rockstar’ A-listers and the rest a jobbing actors with side hustles… I fear this is the case.

The take away, find your human niche and be the best at it. The world is online, global and the market long tailed, there is a market that will pay good money for the best… the only challenge, finding out what your niche is. (I am still working on perfecting my toasted sandwiches btw…)

Culture wins. Against this backdrop there was a lot of talk about finding cultural resonance. After all if we can all generate, designs and content, the differentiator becomes that human based insight to connect with… other humans.

Culture is a fickle and moving thing. Something that evolves and often hard to predict. Yes, it can be nudged in areas, but humans are complex, reflecting what people care about is not easy.

AI is of course, great at predicting and reflecting past patterns. It is arguably better than humans. Authentically, resonating with communities about issues the moment, today, and the future? Probably need to outsource to a human, who is part of that world.

This is something I see too, closer to home. In analysing existing reports and data, AI excels… pulling together, and joining disparate reports, events to interpret for future implications, get the human involved for unique insights (another area to focus for excellence maybe?)

Playing the part. Listening to the journalists, media leaders, brand advocates, marketing evangelists and business leaders, it also struck me just how much of a role we all play in this wider ecosystem.

Sometimes we are aware of it, but often we are are not.

I mean does the brand synergy of a product placement, with celebrity endorsement, at key sporting events really matter? Does it change the world?

As someone who at school, thought owning a Samsonite briefcase was trendy, I am obviously not the best person to comment… but objectively the answer is no. It is just like that spreadsheet may not be innovative or ground breaking, even though I feel quite differently.

We all have different perspectives and for us it is important. The bigger picture it has a role in a wider ecosystem of humanity.

I suppose it is a good job someone is interested, and excels (pardon the pun) to try to make it the best… but it feels like it is also important to keep a little perspective too.

This is a after all – a part we play, not the play itself.

So all in all an interesting week, some important themes and reflections for back in the office Monday. This is the reason I enjoy the event so much, it is always great to get out of your own little echo chamber.

Have a good weekend everyone.

Addendum: AI Governance: The Regulators Are Coming. Yes even in marketing land governance and regulation for AI is coming. The theme, if you use AI in your processes, you/your business still owns the process, outcomes and accountability… sounds strangely familiar to what the FCA said this week too.

With all the furore about Anthropic’s Fable, somewhere between Nuneaton and Rugby, I decided to see what would happen if I used it to build a complete collections system.

Now, this had to have login controls, role based access controls, be AI native, have case management, vulnerability and full treatment plans… KPIs, and seeded with 500 cases.

With a bit of care, some ‘quality’ prompting (and re-prompting!)… about 2 hours later, I had something.

Collect-RO-AR : Intelligent arrears management for modern lenders

At least on the surface level it looks surprisingly like a working collections platform. Not a slide. Not a wireframe. Not a vague prototype, but a demo system, and I think presentable.

Take a look for yourself, have a try at the link above. It did not feel too bad for an afternoon’s work!

Now back in the office and taking a longer look, I do need to stress that this is no way a production ready system… there are some big gaps that need to be closed (the professional in me has to stress!)

• Full identification and verification
• Proper strategy management
• Detailed KPI reporting
• Operational logs
• Decisioning and controls
• Robust vulnerability treatment rules
• Financial difficulty segmentation
• Integration into a wider collections and recoveries environments
• Change controls and governance
• Supply chain controls
• Testing and assurance…. and more

However, if I can create this, this quickly and I am not a software developer or coder, imagine what someone who really knows what they are doing could create… and what would it look like after say, 6 months of work and development. It really makes you stop and think.

This is both exciting and slightly worrying.

Exciting, because it feels the speed of change is about to accelerate again… no longer are we being limited by the ‘HOW’ to do something… AI can now help. Going forward we are going to face a different limiting factor… the “What”. What should this look like? What is the process… What is the idea… this of course is where we need human imagination (and often the more difficult question).

It is also a little worrying, as with great power also comes great responsibility.

AI-generated software can now create something that looks very presentable very quickly. It can create an impression of completeness and polish almost instantly. Dashboards, buttons, workflows and case screens all feel credible…. if you are not doing this you may be left behind… and it is very easy to make something look and feel like a real operating platform.

But looking the part and being fit for purpose are not always the same thing, and this also matters… a lot.

You would never expose such a system, not fit for purpose, to real customer data… potential data security issues, functionality or process logic errors, big questions around controls and future support all could be hidden away underneath.

My collections system was created quickly from a couple of prompts, for example… was there an in-depth understanding of the code, what if I need to make changes, nope… How would you know for similar systems if there are any vulnerabilities in the code.

Also for every time those ‘[AI] need to do this on your computer, do you approve’ boxes appear on your screen, do you really research and understand what you are accepting…. I thought not…!

And, this is before we get to supply chain controls. Do we really know who is behind, companies in our processes… for AI, in this new API landscape?

Of course, much of this does not matter for a demo or ‘toy model’, such as the above… but in production it is critical. This technology is undoubtedly incredible and my prediction is we are on the cusp of a new wave of innovation in software, functionality, also in price.

However, whilst we should adopt and embrace it, we also need to be very careful to make sure we do not lose our heads in the excitement.

• Engaging experts to review and assess new technology – to ensure it is robust, meeting process and purpose
• Fully understanding process and technology supply chains – data design and controls
• Implementing robust governance, including AI policy and an understanding of change controls

The world is about to drop a gear and accelerate, we need to be able to keep up. An interactive demo may look great, but we need to understand ourselves and question what is the thinking underneath.

… the new age is dawning… enjoy the rest of the week.

This is also one of the topics we will be discussing at our next AI meeting on 15 October 2026 in Milton Keynes. Join us to find out how firms should think about the risks, controls and opportunities with AI. Please come along. Click the link below to register and join us.
AI Implementation Forum: Governance, Standards and Practical Implementation

With the World Cup well underway and temperature in the UK rising this week all I can think of is hydration breaks. No I am not talking about the hydration break you may have in the bar, when your team wins!… no I am talking about those ‘hydration breaks’ that have been happening throughout the matches for the teams to sip some water, whilst mainly marvelling at the strength of modern air conditioning.

Now my meetings are typically around an hour, so longer than the 45min in a half, yet despite it being warmer in my office than on most of the pitches (roof closed), I don’t seem to be getting those hydration breaks myself… I have to wait for the next hourly break. And, by looking at what has happened when you do, you can can see why this is.

Every time the match pauses, even for a quick glass of water the game changes. It may have been in mid flow, building in excitement, getting ready to score, yet it stops and the break seemingly resets the teams… and once it stops it takes a while to get back up to speed.

We would see exactly the same pattern back in the office. In a meeting, engaging discussion, ideas bouncing around and you are making really great progress…. but then the phone rings, someone or something interrupts you and everything stops. They you go, hurtling back to stumbling around trying to find momentum again… the heat has left the room, it has broken the flow.

It is a bit old fashioned I know… but it is important to make a cup of tea between meetings not during!

At its essence this is about flow… when in flow, time seems to fly, things get done, stuff gets shipped… once out of flow, everything is harder and getting back… that is an even harder struggle, often you have to restart the whole process again.

In our multi-tasking world it feels this is becoming ever more common… notifications, emails, WhatsApp messages, news headlines, even world cup scores they are all coming at us think and fast. Everything is trying to grab our attention, to distracting us from what we are doing, and get us to do what they want… now.

… And, with AI tools I am starting to find this making things even worse…. everything these days seems to need some micro-attention just to keep things ticking along… net result… progress slows.

Now I would never argue to not have a break for a cup of tea and a biscuit, but just like in the football, it feels like it is something we need to go back to deliberately planning for, so we have some uninterrupted time to play the game. Breaks that genuinely refresh… not manufactured or imposed ones, so something else can get done.

This is of course the same in the office, off and on the pitch… we will all be more focused and feel more rewarded as a result or our efforts.

So as the temperature rises this week… something to kind in mind… and not too much “hydration” during the matches this week….. have a great week, everyone.