The role of chief marketing officer has never been more complex than it is today.
AI transformation, economic upheaval, societal change, and a fragmented media landscape are just some of the intricacies marketing leaders are confronting.
The franchise is anchored by the weekly CMO Insider newsletter, authored by senior correspondent Lara O'Reilly.
As Cannes Lions kicks off, CMO Insider features breaking news, video interviews, profiles, research, and personal perspectives to inspire and inform CMOs and their teams as they build and grow their brands.
CMO Insider News
All the latest from marketing and advertising
I'm the CMO of Indeed. Companies are looking to hire a new kind of marketer
4 min read
Why Pepsi's surprise $1.7 billion Publicis deal has Madison Avenue reeling
3 min read
Gap taps a new exec to find its next act beyond fashion
4 min read
Brands are pushing influencers to hide their paid deals
5 min read
Adtech company The Trade Desk lays off 15% of staff as it restructures into 'smaller pods'
4 min read
Google yet again avoided a breakup of its business — but it will have to play nicer
4 min read
Amazon's fight with the FTC contains an uncomfortable lesson for advertisers
4 min read
What Reddit's ChatGPT citations collapse means for marketers
3 min read
PR pros say Neutrogena botched its response to the Hayden Panettiere backlash. Here's what they think it should do now.
3 min read
I’m a marketer who fell into the ‘empire-building’ trap. Now I know a bigger head count doesn’t mean better marketing.
6 min read
Netflix parts ways with a key ad exec in a leadership shake-up. Read the leaked memo from its ad chief.
4 min read
Coke's Fanta is making its own monsters as brands chase Hollywood-style IP
4 min read
WPP seeks to seal 'highly confidential and sensitive' client information from lawsuit with former exec
3 min read
3 execs who sold their company to Martin Sorrell's S4 Capital are suing, alleging they’re owed millions
4 min read
Nielsen's $2 billion DoubleVerify acquisition is a big play for CMOs
4 min read
Patrón thinks its biggest selling point is what's not in its tequila
4 min read
$4 billion Vanta has a new CMO who wants to make security compliance marketing 'a little zingier'
3 min read
PMI's head of comms explains why AI has made corporate websites more important than ever
4 min read
$1 billion travel agent platform Fora just landed its first CMO
3 min read
Xbox's new bet on advertising could shake up gaming — if players don't revolt
4 min read
Haribo is using mystery bags and pick-and-mix walls to turn its first US stores into Instagrammable marketing machines
3 min read
For Hershey, the battle for Halloween starts now
3 min read
An OpenAI job listing described ambitions to build an ad network. Then the company deleted the references.
4 min read
An AI startup wants 'vibe directing' to become the new vibe coding
3 min read
In conversation
Interviews with top marketers at the 2026 Cannes Lions Festival of Creativity
Jonathan Mildenhall, CMO of Rocket Companies, talks about the brand's transformation, and the responsibility of CMOs now
Anduril's Jeff Miller says the company's "divergent" recruitment campaign is working
Instacart CMO Laura Jones explains the insight behind its "Bananas" campaign, a winner at the 2026 Cannes Lions
The greatest asset that a CMO has is trust, says Snowflake's Denise Persson
Autodesk's Dara Treseder explains why the company is investing $350 million in AI training
As buyers make decisions through LLMs, Bobcat's Laura Ness Owens is focusing more on customer experience
As payments partner to NFL, Amex will help it grow its global footprint, according to the CMOs of both brands
In a world driven by demand generation, CMOs must be the expert on the customer, says Mars' Gabrielle Wesley
CMOs aren't just driving marketing, they are forging the next leadership generation, says JP Morgan's Tracy-Ann Lim
For marketers and creators, deep expertise makes a difference, says Nespresso's Jessica Padula
CMOs need to show results, but they also need inspire their brand and teams, says Meta's Alex Schultz
Companies have pivoted AI talk to concrete business solutions, says Erika Serow, CMO at Bain
Pinterest is about "intention" rather than attention, says CMO Claudine Cheever
Creators like Benny Blanco help drive Yahoo's transformation, says CMO Josh Line
Nuveen CMO Tara Giuliano touts "credible adjacency" over influencer marketing
Creators and professional athletes are growing categories on LinkedIn, says CMO Jessica Jensen
Lenovo's Emily Ketchen shares how the brand is powering the FIFA World Cup, and the communities that surround it
PepsiCo's Mark Kirkham says making the "simple special" drives results
CMOs today need to disrupt themselves, says Adobe's top marketer Lara Balazs
Creators have made 155-year-old Vaseline one of Unilever's fastest growing brands, says CMO Leandro Barreto
CMOs that embrace AI transformation are well positioned to be future CEOs, says Deloitte Digital's Mark Singer
Microdramas are one way Crocs is reaching consumers, says Carly Gomez, the brand's top marketer
AI tools can give CMOs time to focus on taste and judgment, says Reddit's Jim Squires
Being "intentional" with content will help brands win in GEO, says Chime's top marketer, Vineet Mehra
Demonstrating marketing ROI is one of the most important jobs today, says JLL's Siddharth Taparia
The AI pendulum is swinging back to a more realistic place, says Don McGuire, CMO of Qualcomm
Over 95% of Ulta Beauty's sales come from its loyalty members, says CMO Kelly Mahoney
OpenAI's Dave Dugan explains how ChatGPT is building a new ad category
BCG's Mark Abraham says CMOs are taking charge of AI strategy
Inside Cannes Lions 2026
A rundown of the campaigns, trends, and conversations that define this year's festival
The 25 most innovative CMOs of 2026
36 min read
Tina Knowles reveals the one thing that irritates her after being in the entertainment industry for 3 decades
7 min read
Why managing a brand's reputation is more complex than ever in the age of AI
3 min read
CMOs from Coach, American Eagle, and more dish on the platforms and tools they're most focused on
6 min read
How 6 top CMOs like Coach's Joon Silverstein are working to optimize their brands for AI platforms
5 min read
In an AI world, taste is a competitive advantage for brands
4 min read
Over 95% of Ulta Beauty's sales come from its loyalty members, says CMO Kelly Mahoney
Creativity strikes back at the Cannes Lions advertising festival
4 min read
'Queer Eye' star Antoni Porowski says the tech and advertising worlds are obsessing over the wrong word
3 min read
OpenAI's Dave Dugan explains how ChatGPT is building a new ad category
Inside the Cannes Lions party scene — yachts, A-listers, and gallons of rosé
4 min read
Here are the biggest fashion status symbols we spotted at Cannes Lions
3 min read
The Cannes Lions deal the ad industry is buzzing about — and what it means
3 min read
BYD's Stella Li tells BI she wants to put humanoid robots in every car showroom
How top CMOs are making risk central to their marketing playbooks
4 min read
Pinterest CEO Bill Ready wants advertisers to see the platform as a search engine for shopping
3 min read
Marketers, it's okay to let creators get experimental with your ads
3 min read
Move over, Mad Men. Creators are the new kings of the ad world.
6 min read
The AI Marketer
Artificial intelligence is disrupting advertising, creative, marketing, and brands — and the role of the CMO.
Microsoft AI's CMO is leaving as the company rethinks consumer marketing efforts
3 min read
The dream of serving ads to AI agents has hit a snag
3 min read
OpenAI will bring ChatGPT ads to Brazil and Mexico, and is adding a raft of fresh features
3 min read
A startup that places ads for brands like Best Buy and Target in AI platforms raised $30.5 million
3 min read
A debate is brewing over the risks and rewards of serving ads to AI agents
4 min read
AI search is exposing a hidden weakness in the way many brands operate
3 min read
How to fix AI's branding problem, according to top marketers
4 min read
What marketers think about Google's big search and AI changes
2 min read
I'm a CMO who's using AI to transform my team by replacing specific roles with 'full-stack' marketers
4 min read
Yahoo says its AI assistant has a secret weapon in the new search wars
3 min read
Why Klarna's CMO built an AI replica of himself for employees to vent at
4 min read
Read the pitch decks of 17 startups looking to disrupt advertising and marketing with AI
4 min read
This startup wants to replace marketing agencies with AI. Read the pitch deck it used to raise $4.5 million.
4 min read
This AI startup raised $4.5 million to help marketers fine-tune ads and respond to rivals. Read its pitch deck.
5 min read
AI-powered ad spend is set to soar 63% this year as brands ditch manual controls
3 min read
I'm a CMO who thinks AI has brought a long-overdue reckoning for top marketers. Here's how I'm adapting for the future.
4 min read
Google AI Overviews are more likely to talk smack about brands than ChatGPT is, according to new data
3 min read
9 rising stars of brand marketing share how they're using AI and their advice for entry-level marketers
8 min read
CoreWeave's new AI investment: Chance the Rapper
4 min read
I'm a CMO who uses a '10-80-10' rule with AI. It's transformed everything from photo shoots to customer feedback.
6 min read
EY's chief digital officer says marketing is at an AI 'inflection point'
4 min read
Anthropic took aim at OpenAI with a snarky ad and won the AI Super Bowl
4 min read
OpenAI is building an 'integrity team' to prevent ChatGPT ads from going off the rails
3 min read
Limy built a platform that helps brands optimize for the era of AI agents. See the pitch deck that helped it raise $10 million.
5 min read
FLORA raised $42 million for its creative platform that pulls together top AI tools. Read its pitch deck.
5 min read
OpenAI has a $25 billion opportunity in the ad business — but a lot to prove
6 min read
A Google VP explains why ads make sense in AI search but not Gemini — yet
5 min read