What happens when you bring the world’s leading minds in AI, entertainment, retail, and tech together at Cannes Lions? You get the ultimate roadmap for the future of performance marketing.

In episode one of Performance Marketing Unlocked's annual Cannes Lions podcast miniseries, we’re cutting through all the 'Cannesdemonium' to bring you direct insights from the industry giants shaping tomorrow. Listen to leaders and executives from OpenAI, Disney Advertising, Amazon, Yahoo, Snap, and Wolt as they pull back the curtain on what's actually moving the needle along the Croisette.

This podcast was hosted by PMW's Deputy Editor, Joseph Arthur.

~ Episode breakdown ~

(10:48) What will make Cannes Lions 2026 a success?

(20:09) How has Cannes Lions changed?

(29:32) What is making the biggest tech platforms at Cannes most excited?

~ Further reading ~

Cannes Lions 2026: Google unveils new Gemini-powered YouTube tools and Amazon Retail Ad Service hits the UK

Cannes Lions Live Day 3: What happens when we can measure everything?

What is a problem you wish Cannes would solve?

‘Scale plus AI does not equal client value’: dentsu CEO Takeshi Sano reveals fresh playbook

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How can you scale performance beyond the obvious channels? 

For episode 3 of this year’s Digital Disruptors miniseries, Sasha Sadovaia, Product Marketing Manager at Taboola, Cam McIntyre, Campaign Director at The Goat Agency, and Claudia Sava, Senior Paid Social Manager at PureGym share their insights. 

They discuss how they are adapting to new technologies, which channels should be always-on, and what it takes to put your trust, and money, into new channels.

This podcast episode was hosted by PMW's Senior News Reporter, Bethany Lee.

New episodes of this four-part miniseries will be released weekly alongside our main show, Performance Marketing Unlocked. Click this link to view the winners from this year’s 30 under 30 awards.

~ Further reading ~

30 Winners in 30 Days: Sasha Sadovaia, Taboola

30 Winners in 30 Days: Cam McIntyre, The Goat Agency

30 Winners in 30 Days: Claudia Sava, PureGym

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Are marketers still stuck in a binary of data and creative?

In the second episode of this year’s Digital Disruptors miniseries, host Bethany speaks with Molly Peake, Head of Customer Success and Partnerships at AUDIENCES and Eraj Lodhi, Founder of marketing agency Plot Out Loud and Creator of Plotcast. 

They dive into what metrics still matter, whether a false divide between data and creative is holding back results, and whether brands truly know what to do with their data, even if they have it. 

This podcast episode was hosted by PMW's Senior News Reporter, Bethany Lee.

New episodes of this four-part miniseries will be released weekly alongside our main show, Performance Marketing Unlocked. Click this link to view the winners from this year’s 30 under 30 awards.

~ Further reading ~

30 Winners in 30 Days: Eraj Lodhi, Plot Out Loud

30 Winners in 30 Days: Molly Peake, AUDIENCES

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As the World Cup gets underway, how can performance marketers best leverage the opportunity before them?

On this episode of the Performance Marketing Unlocked podcast, Alex Maude, Head of Insight & Research at Ozone, joins host Joe to assess the best ways for brands to win a share of attention during the upcoming FIFA World Cup 2026.

Are traditional ad placements the way to go, or is the real attention battle taking place on second screens? Also, where does the premium web come into this? Listen on to uncover the answers to these burning questions and many more.

This podcast was hosted by PMW's Deputy Editor, Joseph Arthur.

~ Episode breakdown ~

(3:30) Bigger tournament, bigger advertising opportunity?

(10:46) Ensuring social media is an asset, not a burden

(21:35) Making the World Cup count beyond June and July

(24:05) PMW's Resell Me a Pen Challenge

~ Further reading ~

Everything advertisers need to focus on ahead of the 2026 FIFA World Cup

The ads scoring biggest ahead of the World Cup

Half of the World Cup audience doesn’t watch weekly football. Are you planning for them?

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Can marketers afford to still be siloed by channel?

In the first episode of this year’s Digital Disruptors miniseries, host Bethany speaks with Chanelle Urquico, International DSP Engagement Lead at TripleLift, Jack Murray, Senior Paid Social Search Account Manager at Incubeta, and Michael Holloway, SEO manager at Hookflash. 

Together, they discuss how the performance stack is converging and where each of their specialisms sit in a strategy, touching on the biggest changes they’ve seen since the beginning of their careers and the challenges they are anticipating facing in the years to come.

This podcast episode was hosted by PMW's Senior News Reporter, Bethany Lee.

New episodes of this four-part miniseries will be released weekly alongside our main show, Performance Marketing Unlocked. Click this link to view the winners from this year’s 30 under 30 awards.

~ Further reading ~

30 Winners in 30 Days: Jack Murray, Incubeta

30 Winners in 30 Days: Chanelle Urquico, TripleLift

30 Winners in 30 Days: Michael Holloway, SEO Manager, Hookflash

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Performance marketing is officially at an impasse. Employers are squeezing budgets and reconsidering headcount, while employees are ready to walk away entirely. How has adland found itself trapped in a state of mutual unrest?

On this episode of the Performance Marketing Unlocked podcast, PMW's Editor Robin Langford joins host Joe to break down the core findings of PMW’s 2026 Workforce Report. The pair explore the stand-off between junior talent and AI, how the economy is killing salary growth, and why a market that was supposed to stabilise is feeling more volatile – and less diverse – than ever.

This podcast was hosted by PMW's Deputy Editor, Joseph Arthur.

~ Episode breakdown ~

(4:30) How under threat is your role from AI?

(10:35) The rise of fractional jobs

(19:12) Have we seen the death of the generalist?

~ Further reading ~

The State of Hiring: Is a restless workforce at risk of losing out to AI?

The State of Diversity: Why is so much of adland's diverse talent abandoning the industry?

The State of Pay: Stable salaries are masking the real change at the heart of adland

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Performance marketers are desperately trying to master ever-changing algorithms in the pursuit of securing attention in an attention-poor economy – but where are they going wrong?

On this episode of the Performance Marketing Unlocked podcast, Orlando Wood, Chief Creative Officer of System1, joins host Joe to discuss how shifting from 'salesmanship' to 'showmanship' can build a brand that performs in the both the short and long-term.

This podcast was hosted by PMW's Deputy Editor, Joseph Arthur.

~ Episode breakdown ~

(3:26) How do the left and right brain impact advertising?

(8:05) Are we focusing too much on salesmanship and not enough on showmanship?

(23:34) Who is getting the 'brandformance' balance right?

(28:47) Overrated or underrated

(31:24) PMW's Resell Me a Pen Challenge

~ Further reading ~

Top 6 adtech tools this week: System1, Airship, GlobalData, Ampd, Talon.One and DAIVID

Top 10 Easter ads: How are brands navigating the junk food ban?

Top 10 Winter Olympics ads: Michelob, Peacock and Corona take the podium

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The marketers seeing real results with AI aren’t worrying about implementing the right tech – they’re rethinking how decisions get made, who makes them and what role human instinct should play.

This Performance Marketing World podcast episode, produced in partnership with Upp.ai, unpacks why so many AI-led media strategies stall before they scale – and what it actually takes to close the gap with the brands pulling ahead. We’ll share practical advice on where performance is really being lost, and how to realign teams, governance and ways of working to get the most out of AI.

The industry is having plenty of AI conversations, generative AI, agency AI washing, in-housing, measurement, productivity savings. 

All real, all familiar to the people listening. But the conversation that actually determines whether AI-led media performs is the one nobody is having. 

This podcast was hosted by PMW's Deputy Editor, Joseph Arthur.

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The agency model is facing a perfect storm: in-housing is gutting the middle, independent agencies are winning on agility, and AI is automating the ‘making’ part of marketing. So how is the big six responding?

On this episode of the Performance Marketing Unlocked podcast, Jessica Tamsedge, UK CEO of Dentsu Creative, joins host Joe to outline how Dentsu is blowing up traditional silos to prepare for a world where a brand’s survival depends on being ‘machine-readable’ and ‘human-referenceable’. 

This podcast was hosted by PMW's Deputy Editor, Joseph Arthur.

~ Episode breakdown ~

(2:58) What does it mean to be ‘machine-readable’?

(12:23) How does Dentsu keep itself agile?

(19:51) Overrated or underrated?

(25:00) PMW's Resell Me a Pen Challenge

~ Further reading ~

ChatGPT Ads to hit the UK

IPA Bellwether: ‘Where is the confidence coming from?’

Top 6 adtech tools this week: Reddit, SMG, Merkle, Lifesight, Adform and Dentsu

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Zero party has search killed the click. At least, that's the narrative marketers have been sold – but is it true?

On this episode of the Performance Marketing Unlocked podcast, PMW's Editor Robin Langford and Senior News Reporter Bethany Lee join host Joe to talk about the future of the click, and why Google might be trying to bring it back for the sake of publishers and advertisers.

Also on this episode, the trio discuss some standout winners from the 2026 PMW Powerlist, which is available in its entirety here.

This podcast was hosted by PMW's Deputy Editor, Joseph Arthur.

~ Episode breakdown ~

(2:30) The click is dead... right?

(14:55) PMW Powerlist 2026 highlights

(22:00) What makes a good Powerlist winner?

~ Further reading ~

Google expands AI Search features to boost website and community discovery

The PMW Powerlist 2026

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