Creative Control

If GenAI is the biggest technological advancement since the internet itself, then the creative possibilities are or will be pretty much endless. From a brand marketing and advertising perspective, we are still very early days, but there needs to be those willing and able to push the envelope, test boundaries, make mistakes, learn lessons, and evolve from there. Yet how far should the boundaries of brand content be pushed? 

In this episode, I look for some answers by talking to two founders of boutique creative shop Food Arts & Technology, industry legends creative technologist Iain Tait and designer Richard Turley. I also sat down with Jason Zada, founder of AI-focused production studio Secret Level, who has worked with major brands like Coke on utilizing these new tools. 

There are so many different perspectives on how this tech will and should be used creatively. Here you’ll get a glimpse into the perspective of people trying their best to push the tech and their own creativity for brands.

If GenAI is the biggest technological advancement since the internet itself, then the creative possibilities are or will be pretty much endless. From a brand marketing and advertising perspective, we are still very early days, but there needs to be those willing and able to push the envelope, test boundaries, make mistakes, learn lessons, and evolve from there. Yet how far should the boundaries of brand content be pushed? 

In this episode, I look for some answers by talking to two founders of boutique creative shop Food Arts & Technology, industry legends creative technologist Iain Tait and designer Richard Turley. I also sat down with Jason Zada, founder of AI-focused production studio Secret Level, who has worked with major brands like Coke on utilizing these new tools. 

There are so many different perspectives on how this tech will and should be used creatively. Here you’ll get a glimpse into the perspective of people trying their best to push the tech and their own creativity for brands.

On today’s episode, co-hosts Yasmin Gagne and Josh Christensen break down the latest news in the world of business and innovation including the will-they-won’t-they tariffs on Mexico and Canada, Walgreens plans to go private, and a “huge win” for the NFT industry (52:00)

Next, along with the federal workforce, private companies are increasingly calling their employees back to full-time in-person work. Fast Company staff writer Pavithra Mohan joins Yaz and Josh to discuss return-to-office mandates. (07:05)

Finally, Yaz talks with Fast Company’s global design editor, Mark Wilson, about the 25th anniversary and enduring popularity of the beloved PC video game, The Sims. (33:36)

For more of the latest business and innovation news, go to https://www.fastcompany.com/news

To read the latest ‘Fast Company’ coverage on return-to-office mandates, go to: https://www.fastcompany.com/work-life

Be sure to subscribe, rate, and review ‘Most Innovative Companies’ on your podcast app of choice. You can also find more ‘Most Innovative Companies’ podcast content on Fast Company’s YouTube channel, along with more videos on business news, tech, design, and work life.

On today’s episode, co-hosts Yasmin Gagne and Josh Christensen break down the latest news in the world of business and innovation including the will-they-won’t-they tariffs on Mexico and Canada, Walgreens plans to go private, and a “huge win” for the NFT industry (52:00)

Next, along with the federal workforce, private companies are increasingly calling their employees back to full-time in-person work. Fast Company staff writer Pavithra Mohan joins Yaz and Josh to discuss return-to-office mandates. (07:05)

Finally, Yaz talks with Fast Company’s global design editor, Mark Wilson, about the 25th anniversary and enduring popularity of the beloved PC video game, The Sims. (33:36)

For more of the latest business and innovation news, go to https://www.fastcompany.com/news

To read the latest ‘Fast Company’ coverage on return-to-office mandates, go to: https://www.fastcompany.com/work-life

Be sure to subscribe, rate, and review ‘Most Innovative Companies’ on your podcast app of choice. You can also find more ‘Most Innovative Companies’ podcast content on Fast Company’s YouTube channel, along with more videos on business news, tech, design, and work life.

To paraphrase a great philosopher, brand ideas are like small intestines – everybody has one. But could you build something with that idea in less than an hour? In this episode, we meet with David Jones,founder and CEO of The Brandtech Group, a $4 billion company which invested heavily in integrating AI into marketing and advertising services by acquiring leading companies like Pencil and Jellyfish. Jones says GenAI tools tailored to brands make that idea possible, so we challenge him and creative director James Dow to make it happen, right here, right now on the podcast. 

While that’s happening, we also take a look inside a few of the large-scale tools being deployed by major ad agencies right now. Omnicom Advertising Group chief operating officer Deepthi Prakash gives us a peek under the hood of TBWA Worldwide’s CollectiveAI platform, which it has built working with companies like Microsoft, OpenAI, Google, Adobe, and more to create tools trained on decades of successful strategies, creative work and philosophies, then utilized to help inform and evaluate new work and ideas. 

I won’t spoil the brand idea we have, but by the end, you may just have a new favorite toothpaste.

On today’s episode, cohosts Yasmin Gagne and Josh Christensen break down the latest news in the world of business and innovation, including the recent drop in Tesla’s valuation and layoffs at Starbucks. (00:58)

Next, Jay Willis, a ‘Fast Company’ contributor and editor of ‘Balls and Strikes,’ joins Yaz and Josh to discuss DOGE, Elon Musk, and the Trump administration’s current move-fast-and-break-things approach. (04:45)

Finally, Yaz and Josh interview YouTube’s senior director of product management, Kurt Wilms, about the company’s ‘live room’ strategy. (30:55)

For more of the latest news, go to https://www.fastcompany.com/news

Be sure to subscribe, rate, and review ‘Most Innovative Companies’ on your podcast app of choice. Also, you can find more ‘MCI’ podcast content on the ’Fast Company' YouTube channel along with additional videos on business news, tech, design, and work life.

David Droga is a legendary advertising creative and executive. He’s also CEO of Accenture Song, one of the largest advertising and marketing services firms on the planet. 

For those two reasons, we kick off Brand New World with Droga at the 2024 Cannes Lions Festival of Creativity. Why there and then? It’s the world’s biggest convergence of media, marketing, entertainment, technology, and brands, and a mirror of what's happening and a bellwether of what's to come, on a global scale. There’s no better time and place to start a conversation about how brands, and the marketing and advertising industries are approaching AI at this nascent moment.

In this episode, I talked to Droga about what Accenture’s $3 billion commitment to AI means for his work, how it compares to the first digital revolution two decades ago, where it may be headed in the not-so-distant future, and the impact it will have on the art of persuasion and pop culture.

David Droga is a legendary advertising creative and executive. He’s also CEO of Accenture Song, one of the largest advertising and marketing services firms on the planet. 

For those two reasons, we kick off Brand New World with Droga at the 2024 Cannes Lions Festival of Creativity. Why there and then? It’s the world’s biggest convergence of media, marketing, entertainment, technology, and brands, and a mirror of what's happening and a bellwether of what's to come, on a global scale. There’s no better time and place to start a conversation about how brands, and the marketing and advertising industries are approaching AI at this nascent moment.

In this episode, I talked to Droga about what Accenture’s $3 billion commitment to AI means for his work, how it compares to the first digital revolution two decades ago, where it may be headed in the not-so-distant future, and the impact it will have on the art of persuasion and pop culture.

On today’s episode, cohosts Yasmin Gagne and Josh Christensen break down the latest

news in the world of business and innovation, including the release of Grok 3's AI chatbot from Elon Musk’s xAI, and how the prebiotic soda market may be the latest gold rush. (00:55)

Next, Katey Rich, awards editor at ‘The Ankler,’ joins us to talk about Hollywood’s

Biggest Night: the Oscars and their heavy investment in this year’s marketing

campaigns and press runs. Catch her podcast, Prestige Junkie, here. (06:28)

And finally, Yaz speaks to Kat Cole, CEO of AG1 (formerly Athletic Greens). They

discuss growing the brand and navigating the booming supplement market. (38:11)

For more of the latest business and innovation news go to https://www.fastcompany.com/news

To read the latest Fast Company coverage on the Oscars: https://www.fastcompany.com/91276999/oscars-2025-predictions-best-picture-odds-shift-industry-awards

https://www.fastcompany.com/91266057/oscar-nominations-2025-surprises-snubs-best-picture-full-list

Be sure to subscribe, rate and review Most Innovative Companies on your podcast app of choice. You can also find more Most Innovative Companies podcast content on Fast Company’s YouTube channel along with more videos on business news, tech, design and work life. 

On today’s episode, cohosts Yasmin Gagne and Josh Christensen break down the latest news in the world of business and innovation, including Elon Musk’s unsolicited bid to buy OpenAI, the latest inflation numbers for the U.S., and the AI summit in Paris.

Next, ‘Fast Company’ senior writer Mark Sullivan, who covers AI and all things tech-related, walks Yaz and Josh through how DeepSeek upended the AI arms race and what’s next for its competitors.

And finally, Yaz and Josh talk to Caroline Spiegel, founder of the audio-erotica startup, Quinn.

For more of the latest business and innovation news go to https://www.fastcompany.com/news

To subscribe to AI Decoded go to: https://www.fastcompany.com/section/ai-decoded

Be sure to subscribe, rate, and review Most Innovative Companies on your podcast app of choice. You can also find more Most Innovative Companies podcast content on Fast Company’s YouTube channel along with more videos on business news, tech, design, and work life.