Event Overview
AI is becoming the operating system for the advertising industry.
From the way consumers discover brands to how campaigns are planned, bought, measured and optimised, artificial intelligence is reshaping every part of the media ecosystem. Publishers are redefining their business models, agencies are reinventing their value proposition, creators are influencing AI-driven discovery, and entirely new skills are becoming essential for tomorrow’s workforce.
This one-day summit brings together a mix of global and local experts to explore how AI is transforming the advertising value chain and what marketers, agencies, publishers, technology companies and media owners must do to remain competitive in an AI-first world.
Agenda
Hourly Schedule
New Day
- 09:00 - 10:00
- Registration & Networking
- 10:00 - 10:15
- Welcome & Introduction from IAB MENA
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Speakers:
Ian Manning
- 10:15 - 10:45
- Global Adtech Trends
- ExchangeWire
-
Speakers:
Rachel Smith
- 10:45 - 11:30
- AI, Adtech, Agentic Roadmap
- IAB Tech Lab
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Speakers:
Shailley Singh
- 11:30 - 12:15
- The Future of Brand Discovery: AI, Creators and the New Consumer Journey
- For marketers, ensuring their brand is discovered is becoming more complex than ever. As AI assistants and conversational search reshape how consumers find information, traditional approaches to search, content and media are giving way to new discovery journeys. At the same time, creators have become a powerful force in influencing what audiences discover, trust and ultimately choose. This session explores how AI is transforming brand discovery, how creators are shaping both consumer decisions and AI-driven recommendations, and how AI itself is changing the way creators produce, optimize and distribute content. Together, these shifts are redefining the relationship between brands, creators and consumers, requiring marketers to rethink how they build visibility, credibility and influence in an AI-first world.
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Speakers:
Sunil Modha
- 12:15 - 13:00
- AI and the New AdTech Ecosystem: Transforming How Media Is Bought and Sold
- AI is rapidly reshaping the advertising ecosystem, transforming every stage of the media buying and selling process. From campaign planning and audience intelligence to optimisation, measurement and yield management, AI is streamlining workflows, improving efficiency and enabling faster, more informed decisions across the advertising value chain. But AI is also changing who influences those decisions. As AI agents, automated platforms and predictive tools become more deeply embedded in campaign planning and execution, the roles of agencies, publishers, technology partners and marketers are evolving. This session explores how AI is redefining the AdTech ecosystem, where human expertise continues to create value, and what the industry needs to do to thrive as decision-making becomes increasingly AI-powered.
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Speakers:
Akshat Jain
- 13:00 - 14:00
- Lunch & Networking
- 14:00 - 14:30
- AI, Adspend, Economy
- Dr Daniel Knapp
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Speakers:
Dr. Daniel Knapp
- 14:30 - 15:15
- The Future of Publishing: How AI Is Reshaping Publishers and Broadcasters
- AI is redefining how audiences discover, consume and engage with content, creating both new opportunities and significant challenges for publishers and broadcasters. As AI-powered search, conversational assistants and personalised recommendations reshape audience behaviour, media organisations must rethink how they attract audiences, protect the value of their content and build sustainable revenue streams. At the same time, AI is transforming how content is created, distributed and monetised—from newsroom and production workflows to personalisation, advertising and audience insights. This session explores how publishers and broadcasters can embrace AI while maintaining editorial integrity, strengthening audience trust and adapting their business models for a rapidly evolving media landscape.
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Speakers:
Jad Saab
- 15:15 - 16:00
- The AI Agency: Reinventing the Value of Agencies in an AI-First World
- Artificial intelligence is transforming every aspect of the agency business, from campaign planning and media buying to creative development, audience insights and measurement. As AI automates routine tasks and accelerates decision-making, agencies have an opportunity to redefine where they create value for clients. This session explores how AI is reshaping agency operating models, the changing expectations of advertisers, and the evolving role of talent and expertise. As AI becomes embedded across the marketing ecosystem, discussion will focus on how agencies can combine human creativity, strategic thinking and trusted client partnerships with AI-powered capabilities to deliver greater impact in an increasingly automated world.
- 16:00 - 16:45
- The Human Advantage: Building Careers in an AI-Driven Industry
- As AI reshapes marketing, media, publishing, broadcasting, agencies and AdTech, it is also transforming the way people work. Routine tasks are becoming automated, new roles are emerging, and the skills that define high-performing teams are rapidly evolving. The challenge for organisations is no longer whether to adopt AI, but how to equip their people to succeed alongside it. This session explores the personal impact of AI on today's workforce, from changing job roles and career paths to leadership, learning and workplace culture. Industry leaders will discuss the skills that will become increasingly valuable, how organisations can build AI-ready teams, and why human judgement, creativity, collaboration and trust will remain essential in an industry where people and AI work together to deliver better outcomes.
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Speakers:
Celine Gauthier-Darnis
- 16:45 - 17:00
- Close
Ian Manning
Executive Director, IAB MENA
Ian is currently the Executive Director of the IAB MENA, having worked with other industry leaders to establish it in MENA. He has had the privilege of working in multiple roles across multiple markets over his 20+years. This included leading global clients for Agencies in London, as CEO for an Agency in South Africa and recently as Head of Agency Partnerships for Facebook in the MENA region.
Rachel Smith
CEO, Exchangewire
Rachel Smith is co-founder and CEO of ExchangeWire, leading the company’s global operations. Rachel has more than 16 years experience in the digital media, advertising and marketing technology industry.
Prior to this, she spent 10 years in the public sector working with policy advisors and elected politicians at both a local and national level in the UK & Australia. Amongst many other things, this included running media, communications & PR functions for local government authorities in London. Rachel holds a Bachelor of Arts in Politics from the Australian National University, and is on the Board of Trustees for the East London based charity, the Bromely-by-Bow Centre.
Shailley Singh
COO - IAB Tech Lab
Shailley brings several years of product management experience in digital advertising at Yahoo and Say Media building products for mobile advertising, ad operations, targeting solutions, and integrating data platforms. Shailley has supported and worked with multiple IAB initiatives in the past, namely MRAID and Mobile Rising Stars specifications. At Yahoo, he worked on creating innovative ad experiences for mobile and tablet platforms as well as native formats. Shailley has a diverse background as a product leader, consultant, and entrepreneur building and sustaining high performing teams at both large organizations as well as venture funded startups like Paypal, Yahoo, Say Media, Serus, Accenture, and PwC. Shailley has an MBA and Chemical engineering degrees.
Sunil Modha
Akshat Jain
Programmatic Sales Manager MENA, StackAdapt
Dr. Daniel Knapp
Chief Economist, IAB Europe
Daniel has more than 15 years of international experience in advertising research and forecasting. Before being appointed as Chief Economist of IAB Europe, he was Executive Director for Advertising Research at global information company, IHS Markit. Daniel’s research areas span all domains of digital advertising, with emphasis in video, programmatic, platform economics, the business application of AI/ML technologies, agency transformation, and buy- and sell-side optimization.
Jad Saab
Shahid Growth Lead, MBC | MMS
With over 14 years of expertise in the MENA region, Jad has played a pivotal role in digital transformations across a spectrum of industries, including destination marketing, tourism, telecommunications, automotive, FMCG, retail, and governmental entities. His strategic prowess at Starcom KSA resulted in substantial business growth and winning flagship global accounts. Currently at MMS, he leads a team dedicated to connecting partners with opportunities on MBC Group’s digital platforms, driving collective growth.
Celine Gauthier-Darnis
EVP MENAT, Equativ
