There’s no doubt the role of creatives has changed. And it continues to evolve rapidly with each wave of technological advancement. What we’re experiencing today goes beyond a shift in tools or techniques. It feels like a fundamental redefinition of what it means to shape communication, storytelling, and culture.

Historically, every major technological leap has reshaped not only what we create but how we create it. And, just as importantly, how creatives participate in that process. It’s no longer only about having new tools at our disposal, but about where creative judgement sits, how it’s applied, and how it’s evaluated.

Let me try to explain by going back for a moment.

Well, way back.

In the pre-digital era, we shot and edited commercials on film. It was a time-intensive, almost ritualistic process. We’d review rushes, mentally catalogue shots, scrutinise takes frame by frame, and wait hours, sometimes days, for a new cut. Creativity back then was slower, more linear, and physically bound to the constraints of the medium. We respected the craft deeply. There was a sense of reverence and distance between thinking and making.

Then digital changed everything. Suddenly, we could work faster, with more fluidity and collaboration. Editing became open-ended. We could experiment freely, explore multiple versions, and adapt executions for different markets and formats with greater ease. Digital tools didn’t just streamline production; they pulled creatives closer to the act of making. Iteration became part of the process. The feedback loop shortened. We gained agency.

Now, with the rise of GenAI and neuro-powered analytics, we’re entering a new phase of transformation. But this one feels different. This isn’t simply about working faster or producing more. It’s about intelligence. We now have the ability to anticipate – to know before we act.

AI can predict how a piece of creative might perform in terms of attention, emotion, and memorability, even before it goes live. Tools powered by neurological data and historical brand performance are reshaping how we plan, produce, and assess creative work. And that shift is significant.

A recent article about Dentsu’s Measurement Engine, which brings AI and neuroscience together to evaluate and optimise creative assets, stopped me in my tracks. What struck me wasn’t just the sophistication of the tech or the fact that agencies are already putting it to work. It was what this signals for our role as creatives. The conversation has shifted, from what we’re making to how our role is being redefined. Our value still lies in the craft, but increasingly, it’s in how we engage with systems of insight and translate data into creative action.

So, here’s my reflection on where we are, and where we might go next.

The Role of the Creative Is Expanding

#1. The creative brief is no longer a fixed starting point; it’s a living, evolving input.

What was once a static document shaped by strategy and intuition now draws from live data and predictive insight. Creatives no longer work in isolation from performance signals. We’re working within environments that forecast how audiences are likely to feel, notice, or remember an idea before it’s even produced.

The brief now behaves more like a hypothesis—something to test, adapt, and evolve. Brand history co-authors the ideation process. What worked last quarter becomes a reference for what might land next week. The brief is alive, and it changes alongside the ideas it sparks.

#2. Art directors and copywriters are blending storytelling with system thinking.

The creative instinct is still there. But now it sits alongside real-time behavioural data, emotional resonance scores, and predictive modelling. Today’s creatives are expected to navigate dashboards, interpret heatmaps, and consider how cognitive load might shape audience recall.

Craft still plays a central role, but it’s increasingly accompanied by evidence. And rather than diminishing creativity, this might make it more accountable, more iterative—and potentially, more impactful. That remains to be seen. But we should stay curious.

#3. Producers are becoming architects of adaptive content ecosystems.

Production isn’t a finite process anymore. It’s modular, responsive, and continuous. Producers today manage pipelines that account for versioning, localisation, live signals, and performance-led adaptation.

The scope has expanded. Producers are becoming systems thinkers, one who orchestrate content networks that evolve as they move. They will be facilitators of scale and guardians of consistency, managing the delicate balance between central control and local relevance.

#4. The creative toolkit now includes neuro-insight dashboards and predictive platforms.

Tools like Dentsu’s Measurement Engine combine EEG, eye-tracking, cognitive scoring, and machine learning to provide creatives with predictive feedback at the concept stage. It sounds impressive, and it is, but it also presents new responsibilities. Creatives must now learn to evaluate layouts, visuals, and scripts not only for narrative clarity, but for emotional lift and projected recall.

We can now compare two headlines not just for voice or tone, but for predicted memorability. That doesn’t mean reducing creativity to numbers. It does mean expanding our confidence in decisions through foresight.

#5. Creative instincts aren’t being replaced, they’re evolving with earlier, sharper feedback.

There’s a persistent myth that AI flattens creativity. But used well, it can sharpen it. When creatives get timely feedback on emotional or behavioural signals, they can experiment with greater clarity, and iterate without the waste of blind rounds.

Intuition still matters. But in this new context, it becomes informed by foresight as well as hindsight. That’s a different kind of creative strength.

Collaboration Is Evolving, Too

#6. The creative team now includes data scientists, AI engineers, and behavioural analysts.

Our circle has expanded. We’re working with those who build the systems that shape our decisions and measure our outcomes. This means learning new collaborative behaviours, interpreting data narratives, translating technical input into brand meaning, and working with KPIs as shared goals, not external constraints.

The work doesn’t just have to be good. It has to be explainable, traceable, and tuned to context.

#7. Transcreation has become cultural intelligence at scale.

Transcreation today is no longer confused with translation. With the ability to measure emotional resonance by market, we’re designing frameworks that adapt by intent. Modular systems allow local teams to interpret the work meaningfully, without starting from scratch.

It’s not about creating uniformity. It’s about giving teams the raw materials to build culturally relevant expressions that still ladder back to a shared idea.

#8. Real-time iteration is a core creative capability.

Once a campaign goes live, it doesn’t conclude—it enters a new phase. Assets can now be adapted mid-flight. Messaging can be reshaped for new platforms or audience groups on the fly.

Designing with this elasticity in mind isn’t an add-on. It’s part of the brief. Creatives must think in systems, build flexibility into their work, and prepare assets that can shift with signals.

#9. Every creative output feeds into brand intelligence.

Each piece of content contributes to a larger feedback loop. Assets become more than moments, they become signals. What performs well can be reused, remixed, or scaled. What underperforms teaches us what to avoid.

Creativity now fuels a learning system. It’s not just storytelling, it’s a strategic asset that evolves with every piece we put into the world.

One caution though, inserting creative judgment too early in the process, could prevents the system from exploring beyond human convention. So, knowing when to step in would be key and is an area that needs further exploration. 

#10. The creative mindset needs to prioritise outcomes over outputs.

We’ve long celebrated the “hero visual” or final execution. But today, one idea might need to exist in 50 or more versions, spanning platforms, moments, and audiences.

Creative excellence isn’t only about originality or craft. It’s about consistency, relevance, and responsiveness over time. Performance isn’t the enemy of creativity—it’s part of its purpose.

So, What Should We Do Differently?

This all sounds exciting. But it also demands change, that covers culturally, operationally, and creatively. Testing and using new tools, yes. But more importantly, rethinking who’s in the room, when they’re invited, and how we work together.

On top of my mind, here are four places we can start:

1. Redesign the brief as an intelligent, evolving object.

The creative brief should serve as an input into a broader feedback system. Frame hypotheses, identify outcome-based metrics, build versioning plans, and include signals that matter. Let the brief guide decision-making from concept through to performance analysis.

2. Treat production as a system for flexible deployment.

Every asset should be built with adaptation in mind—across platform, market, and audience. Tagging and metadata should be standard. Producers and creatives need to understand versioning infrastructure and design for variation, not just delivery.

3. Bring in broader collaborators earlier.

GenAI encourages cross-disciplinary thinking. We should involve data strategists, behavioural experts, and AI leads at the start of creative development. Don’t bolt insight on after the fact—build with it from the beginning.

4. Reskill creatives for iterative deployment and performance fluency.

The idea of a big reveal is fading. Creatives need to write with range, design with flexibility, and think in adaptive structures. Performance feedback should be seen as fuel, not friction.

Phew. So, what’s next? You might ask…

If everyone is creative, then every creative today is, in some way, also a scientist. We’re becoming hybrids. Part imagination, part interpretation. Maybe even “brand model trainers” or walking “large creative models.” (There’s a headline in that somewhere.)

Creatives will become “Mixture of Creative Experts” (MoCE)

Jokes aside, this requires a shift – in how we think, how we make, and how we lead. It doesn’t happen overnight. But it does start with embracing the complexity.

Creativity still matters. Perhaps more than ever. But how we get there is changing. Instinct still plays a role. Now it works in dialogue with data, tools, and systems that help us learn faster, respond smarter, and create with greater purpose.

The machines might show us the map. But the meaning, the shape, the emotional depth, that’s still ours to craft.

And that, I believe, is where the real power lies.