Awards
Evan Shapiro to deliver a keynote at MipTV in April in France
Mumbai: MipTV has announced it has partnered with industry thought leader Evan Shapiro on exclusive research. This will be unveiled in a scene-setting keynote on the opening day of the market. The event will be held from 17-19 April.
Shapiro will draw on the new audience research, exclusive to MipTV, to challenge assumptions and provide insights to global industry shifts, trends and evolving business models from the stage of the Debussy Theatre of Cannes’ Palais des Festivals on 17 April 2023.
An Emmy and Peabody Award-winning producer and professor of Television at New York University, Shapiro is acclaimed for his bold predictions and distinctive visualisations of the global tech and entertainment ecosystem shared via his influential newsletter Media War & Peace, as co-host of podcast Cancel Culture and through his change agency ESHAP.
Shapiro said, “Armed with a raft of fresh new research from a survey of tens of thousands of media consumers, I’m coming to Cannes to challenge the international tv community to move beyond incremental change and reimagine television for the way our audiences want content now.”
RX France Entertainment division director & director of MipTV Lucy Smith said, “Mip markets are about context alongside content, provided by the industry’s best minds. Evan is a one off. His predictions are bold, incisive and thought provoking, his style unique. In a rapidly evolving global ecosystem such insights are not only invaluable but inspirational.”
Awards
Ajay Kakar to chair jury for ad:tech Honours Awards 2026
Industry leaders join jury as nominations surge for marketing tech awards
NEW DELHI: The ad:tech Honours Awards 2026 are gearing up for a bigger second edition, with Ajay Kakar, head of corporate branding at Adani Group, set to chair the jury for India’s technology-focused marketing awards.
Organised in partnership with the International Advertising Association India Chapter, the awards celebrate the growing influence of technology in shaping modern advertising and marketing outcomes. This year’s edition has drawn a strong response from across the industry, signalling rising momentum around innovation in marketing technology.
The organisers say the nominations reflect a wide range of ideas and approaches, highlighting how brands and agencies are increasingly leaning on platforms, tools and data to sharpen their campaigns and connect with audiences more effectively.
Leading the evaluation process, Kakar will head a jury made up of senior leaders from across brands, agencies and technology platforms.
The jury panel includes Amaresh Godbole, CEO, digital technology business at Publicis Groupe; Bishwajeet S, head of marketing and PR at Volkswagen India; Carol Goyal, executive director at Rediffusion and CEO of Aesthetic Intelligence Lab; Kushal Sanghvi, director at Komerz; Lara Balsara, executive director at Madison World; Rana Barua, group CEO India, sea and North Asia; Deepak Oram, senior vice president growth marketing and martech; and Priyanka Khaneja Gandhi, head of marketing and creative solutions at Amazon Ads India.
The ad:tech Honours Awards aim to recognise not just creative campaigns but the smart use of technology that delivers measurable impact and business results. Categories this year reflect the rapidly evolving digital landscape, covering areas such as artificial intelligence, data-driven marketing, content ecosystems, automation, martech and adtech integration, and commerce-led marketing.
The winners will be announced on 17 March 2026 at the Yashobhoomi Convention Centre in New Delhi during ad:tech New Delhi 2026. The event is expected to bring together leaders from brands, agencies, platforms, creators and technology partners for an evening celebrating the ideas and innovations shaping the future of marketing.iconductor industries.
