Ad Campaigns
‘InnovatorsRace50’: Capgemini teams up with CNN
MUMBAI: Capgemini has turned to CNN as an international media partner to bring InnovatorsRace50 to life amongst the network’s huge global audience on digital and TV. This follows a successful partnership in 2016 for Capgemini’s Innovators Race, where a branded content campaign established the competition amongst CNN audiences.
Entrants have until 28 Februray to take part in Capgemini’s contest via innovatorsrace50.com and will compete across five categories: Govtech and Social Enterprises, Fintech and Mobility, Consumers and Well-Being, Digital Processes and Transformation, Data and Security. Five winning startups will then earn the chance to each secure business backing of US$50,000 equity free funding, extensive networking opportunities, participation in international tech events, access to industry experts and the possibility of becoming a Capgemini partner.
At the heart of the international multiplatform campaign on CNN is Capgemini’s exclusive sponsorship of CNN editorial content ‘Unicorns’. A digital content hub on CNNMoney which will be CNN’s home for multi-media content about start-ups and entrepreneurs, including a series of videos featuring successful startup founders. Alongside the editorial content will be a number of bespoke branded content Capgemini videos produced by CNN International Commercial’s award-winning brand content studio Create. Capgemini’s campaign and branded content will be targeted to reach key audiences using CNN AIM (Audience Insight Measurement).
As part of the digital integration and following the announcement of the InnovatorsRace50’s 10 finalists in June, CNN will publish a unique ranking of the 50 most active and promising startup companies valued at over US$1 billion USD in 2017: The Unicorns 50.
In addition, the campaign will be extended on television with a special Capgemini-sponsored 30-minute programme entitled ‘Unicorns’ airing in October on CNN International available in over 322 million homes and hotel rooms worldwide.
“We are thrilled to once again collaborate with Capgemini this year and celebrate its 50th anniversary while being involved in the exciting InnovatorsRace adventure,” comments CNN International Commercial French-Speaking Europe territories sales director Clementine Soilly. “Being at the forefront of innovation, CNN is the perfect international partner to go beyond standard advertising and amplify the InnovatorsRace50’s mission to shine a spotlight on disruptive startups around the world.”
“CNN is a key media partner to drive reach and engagement for InnovatorsRace50, our special 50th Anniversary edition set up to celebrate the spirit of innovative entrepreneurship,” comments, Capgemini group branding and advertising VP Emmanuel Lochon. “The sponsored multi-format content campaign combined with our global contest work hand in hand to share the stories of some of the most successful start-ups of today while supporting the potential unicorns of tomorrow.”
NATIONAL: Amazon Ads has laid out a sharply tech-led vision for the advertising industry in 2026, arguing that artificial intelligence, streaming TV and creator partnerships will combine to turn brand building into a more precise, performance-driven business.
At the heart of the shift, the company says, is the fusion of AI with Amazon’s vast trove of shopping, browsing and streaming signals, allowing advertisers to move beyond blunt reach metrics to campaigns designed around real customer behaviour.
“The future of advertising is not about reaching more people, but the right people with messages that resonate,” said Amazon Ads India head and vice president Girish Prabhu. “By combining AI with deep customer insights, we help brands move from broadcasting campaigns to having meaningful conversations wherever audiences spend their time.”
One of the biggest changes, according to Amazon Ads, will be the collapse of the wall between media planning and creative development. Retail media, powered by first-party data, is increasingly shaping everything from brand discovery to final purchase, pushing marketers to design campaigns around audience insight rather than internal instinct.
AI is also moving from a support tool to a creative engine. Agentic AI, which automates and accelerates production, is expected to make high-quality creative accessible even to small businesses, compressing weeks of work into hours and giving challengers the ability to compete with larger brands on speed and scale.
Behind the scenes, AI-driven analytics will take on a bigger role in campaign optimisation, identifying patterns, spotting opportunities and recommending actions that would previously have required teams of analysts.
Streaming TV is another big battleground. With India’s video streaming audience now above 600 million and connected TV users at 129.2 million in 2025, advertisers are set to treat streaming not just as a branding channel but as a performance engine, measured increasingly by sales, sign-ups and bookings rather than just reach.
Finally, Amazon Ads sees creators and contextual advertising reshaping how brands tell stories. Creators will act less like influencers and more like long-term partners, while scene-aware ads on streaming platforms will allow brands to insert hyper-relevant offers into the flow of what viewers are watching.
Taken together, Amazon Ads argues, these shifts mark a move towards advertising that is both more human and more measurable, where AI handles the complexity, and creativity does the persuading.
