Future Gazing: 2026 with Louay Al Samarrai, Co-Founder and Managing Director of Active Digital Marketing Communications
COLLECTIVIST: For 2026, what do you think the best tech brands or the best marketing managers are going to do differently compared to this year?
Louay: One of the biggest ironies we see today is that a lot of tech brands, from a marketing perspective, still don’t really know or employ AI.
They’re not doing that either internally within their organisations or externally with their agencies.
So, I think that as we go through 2026, we’re going to see that change.
The expectation from the client’s side will be that you, as an agency, have AI capabilities, and that they also have elements of AI they can deploy to help with their marketing.
Initially, the focus will be on lead generation and field marketing activities versus the public relations narrative side of things.
COLLECTIVIST: What’s your biggest, boldest prediction for the year ahead?
Louay: Controversially (and I say this knowing many people in PR agencies might react with trepidation, fear or even disgust) I think there is a danger that agencies will not look like they do today!
The kind of traditional team structure and model – with account directors, account managers and junior account executives – is going to change.
I think AI will take over many of the junior roles that are available in PR today.
PR agencies are going to become more like consultancies with senior people.
AI will complement someone with 15 or 20 years of experience, creating a highly effective consultancy. Someone without that experience who relies only on AI will struggle, in my view.
The biggest challenge will be for new entrants into the industry, such as university students studying public relations, media, or communications.
COLLECTIVIST: How will AI shape our clients’ campaigns and expectations?
Louay: It’s a double-edged sword. On the downside, we’re going to have discussions around value – what’s valuable to them and what’s not.
Tactical elements like press releases and content creation will require agencies to rethink how they price these services.
On the positive side, the real value comes when experience is combined with AI to develop content, narratives, and stories for clients. That’s where clients will see value and be willing to pay for it. In fact, agencies could potentially charge more because they are moving clients up the value chain, beyond tactical tasks that clients could handle in-house cheaply.
COLLECTIVIST: What would be a dream campaign for your agency next year?
Louay: A dream campaign will be one that pays me a lot of money!!
Otherwise, it would be one that is 90% automated, with AI handling most processes and only 10% requiring human input.
That human element would come from senior consultants overseeing, shaping, reprogramming, and re-prompting the AI to create a fully encompassing campaign.
The campaign would not only engage the target audiences effectively, but also allow precise measurement of its impact.
COLLECTIVIST: What will be the biggest trends and thought-leadership topics in your region?
Louay: From a technology perspective, it will be all about energy, data centers, Large Language Models, and their power consumption.
Conservation and climate change will be part of the discussion. For instance, in Turkey, they’ve created a “green” data center, which is likely to become a trend.
We’ll also continue discussing smart cities and smart transportation. For example, in Abu Dhabi, Dubai, and parts of Saudi Arabia, driverless cars are becoming more common, and AI is increasingly shaping transport systems.
Thought leadership will focus less on AI itself and more on what AI delivers and how it pushes boundaries in other areas.
Talent gaps, particularly in cybersecurity and AI, will also be a major discussion point. Thought leadership around bridging these gaps will be relevant and important in 2026.
COLLECTIVIST: Any major regional events, conferences, or trade shows to look out for?
Louay: Yes, the region is becoming a global powerhouse. As we move into 2026, many clients are prioritising the Middle East. Big events like GITEX will move to a new venue after 27 or 28 years, nearer the airport offering more space and potential.
LEAP in Saudi Arabia is growing as a key event, reflecting the importance of the Saudi market in driving technology. Black Hat is another major event, though it is more focused than GITEX. Events like Seamless, targeting financial services, will also gain importance. Overall, LEAP, GITEX, and Black Hat will be the major events for 2026.
COLLECTIVIST: How will we measure success?
Louay: We’ll measure success by the work we deliver, and the results achieved for our clients through a combination of human expertise and AI technology.
COLLECTIVIST: Lastly, when you get to the end of December 2026 and look back, what will be the best thing that has happened to your agency?
Louay: The best outcome would be growth – not necessarily in headcount, but in revenue and capability. This includes handling larger clients, focusing on higher-level consultative work, shaping narratives and strategies, and creating campaigns that engage a highly diverse region.
The Middle East is often seen as just one homogenous region, but it’s not. With AI and better data, we can target audiences more effectively and create measurable, AI-driven campaigns. Delivering two or three such campaigns in 2026 would be a huge success for us.
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