Introduction
The Cannes Lions International Festival of Creativity continues to be a platform that recognises groundbreaking achievements in the world of advertising and creativity, and this year was no exception.
Artificial intelligence (AI) took the spotlight, with many entries demonstrating clever use of AI, along with innovative blends of data and creativity to produce award-winning campaigns. Below are a few of our favourite winners from 2023!
1. The Artois Probability
One of the most notable campaigns, and winner of the Creative Data Grand Prix, was The Stella Artois’ ‘Artois Probability’ campaign. This campaign used data and AI to analyse images of beer in classic paintings, to calculate the likelihood that the liquid depicted was in fact Stella.
GUT collected data on the colour, shape, and style of Stella Artois bottles and glasses, and along with information on geographical location and date of the paintings, used it to train an AI algorithm to identify the probability that Stella Artois was depicted. In partnership with the Bellas Artes Museum, a series of print ads that featured these paintings were produced, along with their Stella probability percentage.
2. Doppelganger
Chipotle's ‘Doppelganger’ campaign used data and machine learning to send unique emails to people who ordered the same customised meal at the same time in different cities.
Even without the use of discounts or offers, this campaign generated $4.8 million in revenue, gaining significant attention on social media. This creative use of data successfully engaged fans, and showcases the often undervalued power of email marketing.
3. Never Done Evolving
Winning the Grand Prix in the Digital Craft category was Nike’s ‘Never Done Evolving’ campaign. Nike and AKQA used AI to pit Serena Williams against her past self in a simulated tennis match. The match between 1999 Serena, and 2017 Serena, was based on archive footage and used machine learning to model each era’s playing style.
The result was a stunning display of Serena's evolution as a player, and has been viewed over 1.7 million times. Nike is now using the data from this study to improve their products and athletes' performance.
4. The Subconscious Order
HungerStation partnered with Wunderman Thompson to create an innovative campaign that taps into users' subconscious minds to help them decide what to eat. A tool was developed that uses Vision AI and Topic Modeling AI to track users' eye movements and determine their subconscious cravings.
The app presents images of different cuisines, analyses eye movement data, and generates a list of local restaurants where users can order their desired food. This campaign not only revolutionises the food ordering experience but also showcases the power of AI in providing personalised and efficient solutions.
5. A British Original
British Airways’ multi-channel campaign, ‘A British Original’, saw the use of over 500 different print, outdoor and digital media placements and 32 short films, answering the question ‘what is the purpose of your visit?’.
Along with the standard tick box answers of ‘Business’ and ‘Leisure’, the ads provided a third unique, and more relatable answer to explore why we fly - with answers ranging from the witty - ‘That A in GCSE Spanish won’t use itself’ to the moving - ‘It’s what she would have wanted’.
No two ads were the same, with location, weather and time of day playing a part in what was displayed, and this dynamic campaign successfully tapped into the emotions of the British public to help British airways stand out post-pandemic.
Hats off to the brilliant minds behind these entries, each showing how a carefully intertwined use of AI, data and creativity can produce memorable and unique campaigns and brand experiences.
To explore all winners of the Cannes Lions festival, visit their website here. Bring on Cannes 2024!
