Brand IsThe LastAdvantage
Thirty years at the intersection of brand, technology, and transformation.
Jason Warnes joined AKQA in 1998 at the birth of digital. He spent 15 years there, four in Berlin running VW and Audi, working across BMW, Mini, Land Rover, Ferrari, Sainsbury's, and Microsoft. He cites David Ogilvy's principles as a constant thread: attention to detail, everything that leaves the studio must be perfect.
From AKQA he moved to Deloitte Digital as Partner, running digital consulting and CX transformation. Then to WPP as Global Client Lead on Team Volvo across Volvo, Shell, and BP. He now works independently as a marketing advisor and investor.
"Your next customer is going to be a robot."
"The fixation with performance marketing has been a detraction from investing in the brand. When AI takes away the heavy lifting, what is exposed is branding."
Performance marketing will be commoditised. As AI levels the executional field, the only companies left standing are the ones people have a reason to choose.
"Technology has to be in service of solving a problem. Without real purpose, it just remains unused."
The brief he answered to join AKQA asked him to name something not possible five years ago that is now. He applies that question to every tool and investment.
"The brands that appear favourably in AI models will win. Optimise to AI, not to the search engine."
Most brands have not yet adjusted. The shift from search to LLM is structural and already underway.
AI makes the smarter people smarter and the creative people more creative.