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How AI is reshaping identity and marketing: Insights from Cannes Lions 2025

Published: October 29, 2025 by Experian Marketing Services

At A Glance

Marketers are using AI to better understand audiences, improve efficiency, and build privacy-first identity solutions. At Cannes Lions 2025, leaders shared how AI and structured data help deliver relevant messages, adapt to consumer needs, and build trust. Experian supports this through ethical efforts and innovative solutions.

Artificial intelligence (AI) is becoming a bigger part of modern advertising, changing how brands connect with people. At Experian, we believe this technology should make marketing more human, not less. We use AI to help marketers understand consumer behavior, respect privacy, and deliver messages that matter.

As part of our latest Cannes Content Studio series, we spoke with leaders from AdRoll, MiQ, OpenX, Optable, PMG, PubMatic, and Yieldmo. Their insights show a clear path forward; one where technology supports human strategy to create more meaningful connections.

1. How does AI help you see audiences more clearly?

How does AI help you see audiences more clearly?

AI decodes complex behavioral signals to reveal the values and mindsets behind decisions, and increasingly, it predicts what audiences will care about next. This allows marketers to deliver timely, relevant messages that resonate with audiences. At Experian, we help brands use these insights to connect more meaningfully and ethically.

Takeaway: Experian’s tools help brands uncover audience insights, enabling more meaningful and ethical connections.

2. Where does AI actually save time, and improve results?

Where does AI actually save time, and improve results?

Running campaigns is time-consuming. Solutions like Agentic AI now orchestrate end-to-end campaign workflows, audience building, trafficking, QA, pacing, and routine optimizations, so teams focus on strategy and creativity. Many leaders (94%) are investing broadly in AI to drive efficiency and impact, and 49% of marketers use it daily for image and video generation, shifting repetitive tasks from people to tools. By quickly combining past and current performance data, AI can pre-optimize before launch and refine mid-flight, while marketers steer the message and experience.

“AI uses past campaign data to optimize performance before launch, continues learning during the campaign, and refines strategies based on the insights it generates, driving better results over time.”

PubMaticHoward Luks

Takeaway: Experian’s solutions streamline campaign workflows, allowing marketers to focus on creativity and strategy while improving results.

3. How do AI and human strategy work together in real time?

How do AI and human strategy work together in real time?

AI handles real-time data analysis and optimization, freeing marketers to focus on strategy, messaging, and creativity. By defining audiences once and activating them across platforms, teams can adapt quickly and confidently. At Experian, we combine machine intelligence with human insight to deliver smarter, more agile campaigns.

“AI analyzes data, pulls insights, and automates optimizations, allowing marketers to focus on strategy, messaging, and creativity instead of spending time digging through numbers and data.”

AdRollLizzie Chapman

Takeaway: Experian solutions empower marketers to adapt quickly and confidently, combining human strategy with insights.

4. What does privacy-first look like now?

What does privacy-first identity look like now?

Relying on simple, static data points is no longer enough. A modern approach to identity blends deterministic data (like known identifiers) with modeled components, ensuring data remains de-identified where possible. Clear, transparent guardrails, permitted-use policies, retention limits, sensitive-category blocks, and audit trails, help brands balance personalization with privacy, build trust, and respect user choice.

“A new blend of identity systems combines deterministic data, known identifiers, and model driven components, creating fresh ways to address identity and activate campaigns with precision.”

OptableVlad Stesin

Takeaway: Experian’s privacy-first identity solutions help brands balance personalization with safety, ensuring trust and compliance.

5. Which new data signals matter, and why?

Which new data signals matter, and why?

AI is unlocking a new generation of data signals, like content context, sentiment, emotional tone, suitability, attention, and commerce intent, that go beyond legacy identifiers like cookies and demographics. These signals can help brand messages appear in the most relevant environments and by high-value audiences. Used well, they improve relevance, avoid placements near unsuitable or off-brand content, and drive stronger campaign outcomes.

“Unlocking new data sets (like emotion, sentiment, and context), AI is creating innovative ways to connect client content with advertising opportunities and rethink how we approach the market.”

PMGSam Bloom

Takeaway: Experian’s solutions use advanced data signals to help marketers create more effective and innovative campaigns.

Why Experian for human-centered AI?

Why Experian for human‑centered AI

We deliver on the promise of AI-powered marketing through five pillars:

  1. See audiences clearly across households, individuals, and devices.
  2. Recommend next‑best audiences and automate setup for faster execution.
  3. Adapt in real‑time to keep relevance high.
  4. Innovate responsibly with strong governance and transparency.
  5. Plan, activate, and measure campaigns on one unified platform.

The future of intelligent marketing

The future of intelligent marketing

AI will keep accelerating, but the goal stands: make marketing more human. Teams that blend privacy‑first identity, predictive insight, AI‑powered simplicity, and real‑time intelligence will earn trust and drive outcomes. Experian helps you bring those pieces together so every campaign moves from assumptions to clarity, and from activity to measurable results.

Talk to Experian about building human-centered AI into your marketing strategy

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FAQs

How does AI help marketers understand audiences better?

AI analyzes complex signals, behaviors, values, and mindsets to provide a clearer picture of what matters to audiences. That clarity makes messaging feel personal and relevant. Learn more about Experian’s Digital Graph and how it can help marketers understand audiences better. 

Where is AI improving campaign efficiency today?  

Automation reduces manual setup and reporting, so teams focus on strategy and creative. Nearly half of marketers (49%) use AI daily for image and video generation, reflecting this shift. 

What does “smarter activation across platforms” mean?

Smarter activation across platforms means defining audiences once, then carrying them across channels with live feedback, so relevance and suitability stay high. See how Experian enables smarter activation with our data and identity solutions. 

How is AI changing identity? 

Privacy‑first identity blends deterministic and modeled components, keeping data de‑identified where possible. Experian’s solutions balance personalization with safety. Learn about Experian’s identity solutions is changing identity. 

Why is structured data important for AI‑driven marketing?  

AI systems rely heavily on brand‑managed sources. 86% of citations come from websites, listings, and reviews, so clean, accurate, structured data makes your answers and your brand more discoverable. Discover how Experian supports structured data for AI-driven marketing. 


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At Experian Marketing Services, we use data and insights to help brands have more meaningful interactions with people. As leaders in the evolution of the advertising landscape, Experian Marketing Services can help you identify your customers and the right potential customers, uncover the most appropriate communication channels, develop messages that resonate, and measure the effectiveness of marketing activities and campaigns.

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