Performance by Design: AI, platforms, and human expertise at ADWEEK House Cannes Lions

It is no surprise that conversations about AI dominated the circuit at this year’s Cannes. As commerce media leaders gather for the biggest week in marketing, the hype around AI couldn’t be ignored.

What is the truth around AI’s power over the consumer journey and commerce media? And as the conversations evolve, how is the AI hype evolving into practice across the commerce media ecosystem?

During Commerce Connections at ADWEEK House Cannes Lions, SMG’s Global Head of Product, Claire Trbovic, joined Roundel’s Jenny Holleran and 84.51˚’s Nick Hamilton for a discussion about the realities of AI and its implementation.

The intersection of AI, Platforms, and Human Expertise.

1. AI has created a new path to shopper discovery

Shoppers are no longer moving through a linear funnel. AI has reshaped discovery into something far more fluid. An “intricate spider web,” as SMG’s Trbovic described it, where entry points can happen anywhere, and the journey becomes increasingly personalised.

While this creates better and more relevant introductions to brands and categories, it also adds complexity. It becomes harder to understand where someone is in their journey at any given moment.

“It may be the first time they’re seeing that brand, it may be the first time they’re entering that category,” said Target’s Holleran. “What is that objective that we need to meet them with from a brand? Is it awareness, is it consideration, is it conversion?

As AI reshapes discovery, it also shifts the timing and structure of the broader path to purchase. The traditional stages still exist, but they may occur in different sequences or moments.

For marketers, the challenge is staying precise about where and when those moments are happening as the journey becomes increasingly non-linear.

2. AI only matters if it solves a human problem

As the shopper journey becomes more complex, clarity of purpose is essential. AI only creates value when it is grounded in a real human need — otherwise it risks adding complexity without impact.

“I think it’s about really getting to the crux of what the human problem is,” Trbovic said. “What is my customer, or my consumer, or even the people in the retail teams, trying to achieve? And what tech should we be building to support them?”

Without that grounding, AI becomes technology for its own sake, consuming time and resources that could otherwise be used to improve real-world experiences and outcomes.

3. Platforms should automate repeatable work, and humans should drive strategy

From a network perspective, the goal remains solving problems for the humans behind media orchestration. AI should reduce the time spent executing campaign mechanics and increase the time spent on strategic thinking: creative planning, meaningful conversations, and interpreting campaign signals.

Beyond automation, Trbovic highlighted that Plan-Apps, the intelligent commerce media operating system from SMG, is built around empowering the user.

“We want to actually make it so that they can make easier decisions, quicker decisions, better decisions, not fewer decisions,” she added.

4. The shopper experience will always be deeply human

Even as systems evolve, shopping remains an inherently human experience driven by emotion and still taking place largely in-store.

“I think AI does a really good job of giving you what you are already going to get anyway, ” said Kroger’s Hamilton. “But what is that inspirational moment?”

AI can improve relevance, targeting, and omnichannel coordination, but it cannot fully replicate inspiration or the feeling of discovery. People still want to explore, compare, and make decisions for themselves.

Ultimately, AI’s role is to support the shopper journey, not replace it. From the teams that orchestrate the shopper experience to the customer making the purchase, AI will amplify human expertise and drive consumer engagement.

Learn more about the panel and Commerce Connections at  ADWEEK.