LAS VEGAS – CES not only serves as a showcase for the products that shoppers may soon see on store shelves or for sale online, but also for advertising agencies to meet with clients, media outlets and other vendors. This year’s gathering had a collaborative spirit as marketing professionals ponder how artificial intelligence is going to change the way they work.
“What I’ve loved about this CES is: what can we do? Where can we take data and tech, and where can we work together to create something new?” Carrie Drinkwater, chief investment officer at Dentsu’s Carat USA, said in this interview at CES 2025 with Lisa Granatstein, editorial director of Beet.TV.
“Everybody’s ready to start new conversations. That’s been a theme,” Drinkwater, who has attended CES 12 times, said. “Maybe it’s the new year, new you, but it’s the first time at CES I felt the excitement of ‘let’s build and create together.’”
Gadget makers and software developers continue to integrate their technology with AI to handle a greater range of tasks. For advertisers, there’s a greater possibility to personalize their messaging to highly specific consumer groups.
“Personalization will create greater opportunity for cool content and greater ideas,” Drinkwater said. “It also creates greater fragmentation.”
She said marketers will face challenges in ensuring they’re reaching the right audiences in this environment. Drinkwater also is enthusiastic about the growing role of social influencers to introduce brands to their online followers, but cautions against diluting a brand’s identity.
“I’m a big fan of friend-to-friend marketing, which I think is social influencer,” she said. “I believe in the power of that, but I’m also a huge believer in big brand marketing. What I fear is that a lot of clients are being pushed to go down the funnel, losing their brand story. In a year or two, we’ll start to see those implications.”
You’re watching Beet.TV’s coverage of CES 2025. You can view all of our CES 2025 content here.
