VCCP launches generative AI agency

VCCP has launched an AI creative agency called Faith, which will create work using generative AI tools and also act as a research and development hub for the network. To help on the R&D side, the agency is also partnering with two universities. 

Faith’s partnership with Staffordshire University’s Digital Technologies and Arts will be focused on designing the new “frameworks for use within the industry,” according to a statement by VCCP.  Its partnership with Keele University Business School will explore the implications of AI on the operational and commercial structure of businesses.

More AI news: Google introduces AI-generated ad tools

The agency will launch with 14 employees made up of creatives, technologists, prompt engineers, strategists and data analysts.

“We have faith that AI, used responsibly, will be an unparallelled accelerator of human creativity and imagination. We reject the notion that AI will make human creativity obsolete," said VCCP CEO Michael Sugden. “We won’t realize this potential, however, by noodling around with MidJourney and Chat GPT. This is why we’re launching a dedicated agency to advance AI’s creative applications, accelerate our collective learning and share it quickly with our clients."Sugden, along with VCCP Chief Strategy Officer Michael Lee, will hold the same titles at Faith. The agency’s first client is accounting and business management software company Sage.   

Energy BBDO names new managing director

Energy BBDO has named a new managing director. Daale Carter, who most recently served as a senior VP, media strategy and planning at Bolingbrook, Illinois-based agency Amsive, has over 18 years of experience in the industry. She takes over for Lianne Sinclair, who left to join AT&T.

“In our search for the next managing director of the agency, we were seeking a leader with a digital and experience-first mentality who intimately understood changing consumer behavior as well as the rapidly evolving platforms they frequent. From the moment we met Daale, we knew she was exactly that person,” said Energy BBDO CEO Jeff Adkins in a statement.

Proof wins Sprinkles bakery brand AOR

Bakery brand Sprinkles has chosen Austin, Texas-based Proof Advertising as its creative, social, digital and media agency of record. Sprinkles, which is known for its cupcake ATMs, wanted to consolidate its marketing efforts under one full-service agency and was drawn to Proof’s collaborative creative approach, according to Sprinkles Chief Marketing Officer Michelle Wong. 

Sprinkles currently has 50 bakery and ATM locations nationwide and an e-commerce business that the company hopes to grow further through digital transformation and franchising. Proof has a history of food and retail work for brands such as Subway, Stubb’s BBQ sauces, Apothic Wines and Del Frisco’s Grille.

Prior creative duties were held by Herman Scheer. The brand had previously worked with various media consultants. 

Wunderman Thompson Canada names president

Vaishali Sarkar, CEO of Wunderman Thompson and VMLY&R Indonesia, is taking a new role as president of Wunderman Thompson Canada. She assumes the role vacated by Jeff Dack, who left in late 2022. The agency’s local offices in Canada include Toronto and Montreal, with clients including HSBC, Microsoft and automotive brands. 

As CEO of Wunderman Thompson Indonesia, Sarkar led the agency for three years through the merger of JWT, Wunderman and Mirum. She won and led Danone Aqua, Indonesia’s biggest water brand and one of Wunderman Thompson Indonesia’s largest brands. Sarkar spent most of her three-decade career at Ogilvy in Asia, and during her only time away from WPP, Sarkar was CEO of BBDO Indonesia for a year. 

Campaigns for the dogs

May saw the launch of two campaigns featuring man’s best friend. In the first, Red Roof celebrated its 50th anniversary and National Pet Month, rewarding pet parents by giving away more than 50 free night stays. Known for its #PetsStayFree policy, the new campaign #PeopleStayFree, developed by Acadia, celebrates pet parents. The campaign kicked off with a series of videos in which pet owners need to “stay” while they are covered in peanut butter, whipped cream and dog treats, and their dogs enjoy licking the goopy mess off their owners. 

In another campaign giving treats to adorable puppies, Pup-Peroni demonstrates the lengths people will go to for a dog’s attention. The spot, “Amnesia,” directed by Harold Einstein, shows a man taking advantage of his roommate’s amnesia by feeding the roommate's Jack Russell Terrier Pup-peroni treats and becoming its new best friend. The ruse only falls through when the roommate notices a tattoo of the dog on his back and rushes back to claim his furry best friend. 

This is the latest iteration of the “Be Your Best Friend’s Best Friend” campaign, with new work from Publicis Groupe’s Power of One solution, PSOne, a bespoke agency for The J.M. Smucker Co., creatively led by BBH USA. 

Just briefly

David has named Ricardo Honegger its first chief growth officer in the U.S. Honegger previously served as the managing director of David Miami for three years. Carolina Vieira, who previously served as head of account management at the agency, will be taking on the managing director role in Miami. It’s unclear who will be taking on the head of account management role moving forward.

Omnicom’s cultural strategy consultancy Sparks & Honey has appointed its first chief innovation officer. Camilo La Cruz is taking on the role after previously serving as chief strategy officer at the company. It’s unclear who will be taking on his previous role.