In an interview with Communicate at Cannes Lions 2026, Azhar Siddiqui, CEO and Partner at Mediaplus Middle East and a jury member at the festival, shared his perspective on the rapid evolution of marketing, the growing role of AI, and the Middle East’s position as one of the world’s most progressive advertising markets. Siddiqui argued that while technology is transforming every aspect of the industry, human creativity and human connection will remain at the centre of effective marketing. He also discussed changing consumer behaviour, the region’s young demographic advantage, and the advice he would give CMOs navigating the next phase of growth.
What is your message to CMOs today?
I think both CMOs and agencies need to be really at pace with the way technology is evolving because it’s coming out so fast and it’s directly affecting our industry in a positive way.
But it’s up to us to leverage that for the betterment of the entire industry.
AI has dominated conversations at Cannes Lions this year. How do you see the relationship between technology and human creativity evolving?
Yesterday on stage, there was a phrase: “human, technology, human.” I think maybe it’s the other way around. It’s just technology, human, technology.
Because it’s the human that connects and holds the pieces of technology together.
The centre of everything we’re going to do is going to remain human. The number one thing to remember is that the two ends of the chain are human. The decision-maker is human, and the consumer at the end of the chain is a human being.
As much as AI can assist and accelerate the connection, human creativity will always play the biggest role in impacting the end consumer, which is a human, emotionally driven being.
How do you see Middle Eastern brands growing and maturing?
Honestly, I think brands from the Middle East are probably growing at a faster pace than brands in some other parts of the world.
The unlearning has to happen across the whole world, but because the Middle East is still upcoming, it has less to unlearn.
Markets like the UAE and Saudi Arabia are inherently progressive. So it’s not just in the industry — it’s in the DNA of these countries to be progressive, advanced, and futuristic.
So the adoption is much faster and much better in our markets than what I can see in many other parts of the world.
How is consumer behaviour changing across the region?
Consumer behaviour is changing all around the world, and even more so in our region because we have one of the youngest demographics anywhere.
The generational gap and the difference in the generational gap is getting shorter and wider at the same time. Before, you would see major differences across generations separated by 20 years. Today, a generation that is less than 10 years apart can behave very differently.
So it’s very important for all of us to stay up to date and keep our finger on the pulse of younger generations.
Last question – if you were an advisor to a CMO heading into Q4 and the first half of next year, what would be your key recommendation?
View the market not from your own lens, but from your consumer’s lens. And the consumer is changing very fast because of the changes in technology.
So I think that’s what I would do.
