The twelfth edition of our TWELVE Magazine encourages a stronger spirit of togetherness and a mindset focused on possibilities. In this issue, we share insights and perspectives from voices such as Ian Beacraft, Bill Kaulitz, or teamLab founder Toshiyuki Inoko.
#1 FUTURE VISIONS, ECONOMIC REALITIES
I hope by 2040 we’ve forgotten how to worship efficiency as the highest goal. For 150 years, productivity was defined by speed, consistency and scale. But AI is rewriting that equation: when machines can optimise endlessly, human value lies in imagination, ethics and judgment. We’re not replicating human intelligence in silicon – we’re replicating cognitive intelligence. True human intelligence is multi-dimensional. Efficiency should be the floor, not the ceiling of progress.
Ian Beacraft, Chief Executive Officer & Chief Futurist, Signal & Cipher
#2 THE TECH FACTOR
Before our very eyes, artificial intelligence is developing from a much talkedabout innovation to a standard basic technology. In the same way that we don’t think about electricity and generators when we flick on a light switch, in just a few years’ time we will no longer be wondering where exactly a language or image model is running in the background.
Oskar Trautmann, Manager Strategy Agentic AI, Plan.Net Studios
#3 THE HUMAN FACTOR
Good ideas don’t develop from what has already been, but rather from what no one has ever thought of. This kind of ‘skip-thinking’ is profoundly human. And this is exactly what will become more and more valuable as the deluge of generic content increases. Because only humans really know how to catch attention.
Barbara Evans, Managing Partner, Mediaplus Group
#4 THE POWER OF COLLABORATION
We’re living in a time where former constraints – limited formats and linear processes – no
longer apply. You can create virtually unlimited assets for highly individual target groups, iterate rapidly with AI and optimise across touchpoints in real time. That’s liberating but also overwhelming. ‘Together’ is the answer: bringing teams, tools and decisions into one rhythm.
Marc Verschoor, CEO & Managing Partner, Serviceplan Group The Netherlands
#5 BRAND FASCINATION & HYBRID BRAND EXPERIENCES
Far too many brands and fashion labels hide behind small, limited-edition Pride capsule collections that are all well and good but don’t really require any commitment. That’s what I found so refreshing about Rainbow Wool. Here, the commitment is already integrated into the production process. At the same time, it raises a lot of questions: Why is this even still an issue? Why is it still only humans that have a problem with homosexuality? But more than anything, the project shows that together – with our love for each other and our love for animals – we are a lot stronger than anything that currently passes as ‘normal’. You just have to put yourself out there.
Bill Kaulitz, Singer, Songwriter, Model and Podcaster
#6 NEW LEADERSHIP & BRAND MANAGEMENT
In many cases, brands mistakenly use the term ‘community’ to refer to both their target groups and their followers. But your target group is the people that you’re selling something to, and your followers are people who, even though they follow you, are only watching what you’re doing and not interacting. Your community is the people who actively engage with your content and brand – and what you stand for as a brand. That means that this community uses the same language as the brand, the same words, shares the same memes and also the same problems, both in the community and with one another.
Shirin David, Content Creator, Artist and Entrepreneur
#7 CREATIVITY & CO-CREATION
Everything exists in a long, fragile yet miraculous and borderless continuity. If people were able to perceive it this way, their perception of the world itself would expand, and the more you can perceive the world, the more deeply you can experience it. I think that’s a kind of happiness. Understanding the world by separating it into distinct parts using logic and language can be convenient and wonderful, but it can also make it dull.
Toshiyuki Inoko, Artist & Founder teamLab
#8 THE VALUE OF COMMUNITY
If a brand just wants to get in on the action to harvest clicks, it’s going to fall on its face. The
community is smart – they know the difference between real support and selling out. But if a brand really listens, interacts with the culture on equal terms and is perhaps even part of it themselves, then there’s absolutely nothing stopping it from working.
Nura, Rapperin, Actress and bestselling Author
#9 VELOCITY & EFFICIENCY
Velocity is not a goal to be achieved. It’s a principle that is lived and breathed. Every day, in every decision, in every strategic move. The future doesn’t belong to the fastest – it belongs to the most agile.
Jens-Christian Jensen, Chief Strategy Officer, Plan.Net Group
#10 COPORATE RESPONSIBILITY & TRUST
Yes, AI can generate content, but it doesn’t generate meaning on its own. It’s not the artist, it’s the brush. The quality of what it creates is shaped greatly by the intent and perspective of the person prompting it. Two strategists may work from the same brief and data sets, yet the resulting narratives, imagery and tone could differ dramatically. Their prompts reflect different lived experiences, assumptions and values. Diversity has become a critical variable in an algorithm’s output. The most striking ‘culture shock’ is probably not how people interpret the same thing differently, but something that one person finds obvious never occurs to the other.
Rose Huang, Strategist, Mediaplus North America
#11 ORGANISATIONS OF TOMORROW
This is exactly where artificial intelligence disrupts the model. AI is neither a department nor a tool. It is a catalyst that forces us to rethink the flow of knowledge, data and intuition. Creativity becomes an adaptive network, and leadership more a state of mind than a position.
Stéphane Perrot, Chief Executive Officer, Serviceplan Group France
#12 HUMAN X TECH = TOGETHER WE ARE UNLIMITED
Young target groups no longer want flawless campaign visuals – they want honest, diverse perspectives. We are currently experiencing a significant shift away from pigeonholes like ‘Generation X/Y/Z’ and towards a form of direct communication that is based on mindsets and lifestyles. After all, someone can listen to hip-hop when they’re 13 and still be listening to it when they’re 83. Age is beginning to take a back seat, it’s the attitude that counts.
Franziska Gregor, Managing Director, Serviceplan Culture
