From the very first day of the Cannes Lions 2025 festival, it was clear that AI would not be leaving the main stage anytime soon, notes AdAge. And that’s exactly what happened. Top marketing leaders from Amazon, Mars, and Apple shared how AI is transforming their campaigns, processes, and teams – while also emphasizing the importance of staying focused on what truly matters: creativity.
Amazon: A Personalized AI Agent as the “Voice” of the Brand
Claudine Cheever, Vice President of Global Marketing at Amazon, presented an internal AI assistant named Queen Claudine, trained on her own marketing documents, writing style, and editing approach.
“Queen Claudine removes all the empty ‘salesy’ talk. No more phrases like ‘incredibly successful,’” Cheever explained.
The agent functions as an adversarial AI – useful precisely because it monitors and edits the work of other bots. The tool was developed using the Amazon Q platform, which other companies are also using to create their own internal AI systems.
A major recent challenge was Amazon’s rebranding – the first change to its visual identity in 23 years.
“Every pixel change on Amazon’s site can cost billions of dollars,” Cheever emphasized.
Mars: AI as a Tool for Acceleration and Protection of Processes
Gülen Bengi, Global Marketing Director at Mars, described how AI is being used to accelerate e-commerce production – through a virtual studio that allows digital shelf content to be generated in minutes instead of days.
A key focus is also security: last year’s Snickers campaign included an AI chatbot version of football coach José Mourinho, which required detailed filters and “human-in-the-loop” oversight.
“We gave consumers control over the experience, but also built strong safeguards against misuse,” said Bengi.
Mars recently announced a major strategic partnership with the Publicis group, further reinforcing their commitment to digital transformation – as reported by Media Marketing.
Apple: AI Doesn’t Replace Creativity – It Enhances It
Tor Myhren, Apple’s Vice President of Marketing Communications, spoke about the fears AI is generating among creatives – including the question:
“Will we still have jobs tomorrow?”
“I don’t believe in that kind of ending. Marketing is an industry built on creativity – and that doesn’t change,” said Myhren.
Although Apple isn’t known for publicly experimenting with generative AI tools, their strategy includes immersive video experiences through Vision Pro and high-concept campaigns like the digital identity of a fictional company from the series Severance.
The shared message from leaders at Amazon, Mars, and Apple is that AI is a valuable ally – but that humans must continue to play the leading role, especially when it comes to creative decision-making.
“All of you here are the most influential people in the industry. You are the ones who need to define what AI will look like in the world of creativity,” Myhren said last week.
