By Katrina Stroh, Vice President
In November, we attended the Mirren AI Conference, an all-day, virtual deep dive into how agencies across the country are integrating AI into their work. It was an inspiring mix of panels, case studies, and honest conversations about what’s working, what’s not, and what’s still very much in progress.
Across the board, one theme was clear:
2025 was the year of exploration and play.
2026 will be the year of real investment and operationalization.
For agencies, Media+ included, AI is no longer a “nice to have.” It’s quickly becoming table stakes for staying competitive.
Below are the biggest shifts in thinking that stood out.
1. AI Should Be Additive, not a Replacement for Humans
One of the strongest messages from nearly every speaker was that AI is most powerful when it elevates the work humans do, not replaces it.
AI should:
- Remove repetitive, manual, and tactical tasks
- Streamline workflows and operations
- Improve speed-to-insight
- Free teams to spend more time on thinking, creativity, and strategy
The use of AI isn’t about reducing the role of people, it’s about expanding the role of their thinking, creativity, and impact.
2. AI Is Only as Smart as the Inputs You Give It
A recurring theme across the conference: Shallow prompts = shallow answers.
Examples included:
- AI defaulting to generic outputs (“Pick a number between 1–10”—it picks 7 every time)
- Models delivering templated strategies when prompts lack direction, a POV, or constraints
- Underperforming systems due to a lack of continued training or challenges
The takeaway: Great AI outcomes still require great human critical thinking.
You must train it, probe it, challenge it, and push it to take new perspectives in order to get differentiated and meaningful outputs.
3. Never Rely on a Single AI Source
Several speakers shared a best practice that resonated deeply with us as a media agency:
Use multiple AI tools to triangulate, validate accuracy, and expand thinking.
Just as strategists use multiple research sources, using only one AI model limits breadth, creativity, and accuracy. Each tool has its own strengths, and pairing them creates a more powerful, well-rounded approach.
4. AI Won’t Replace Strategy, But It Will Transform How Strategy Gets Done
The message wasn’t that AI will make strategists obsolete.
It was the opposite: AI finally makes room for strategy to be done with more rigor and depth.
With AI handling the time-consuming work of synthesizing data, formatting, and admin tasks, humans can spend more time:
- Connecting dots
- Exploring “what if” scenarios
- Interrogating data
- Diving deeper into consumer motivations
- Being imaginative and inventive
AI becomes the multiplier—not the strategist.
Final Thought: The Human Advantage Still Wins
The clearest takeaway from the Mirren AI Conference was this: AI may accelerate the work, but humans define the value. The agencies that will win in 2026 won’t be the ones using the most tools, but the ones using AI to create more space for human thinking, judgement, and connection. AI can surface patterns and generate options, but people decide what matters, make the call, and turn insight into impact.
At Media+, we see productivity not as doing more, but as doing better — and when applied thoughtfully, AI gives our teams the time and headspace to be more present, more strategic, and more collaborative. Our north star remains unchanged: human-centered thinking, supported by smart technology.At the end of the day, our goal is simple: to harness AI in ways that elevate our thinking, strengthen our work, and create even greater impact for our clients.
