This post was created in partnership with Treasure AI
While some marketing leaders are building the right foundation to scale AI, many still struggle to turn experimentation into responsible, measurable decisions.
During a Brandweek 2026 fireside chat co-hosted by Treasure AI, Ryan Joe, editor-in-chief of ADWEEK, sat down with Callie Cogley, consumer data strategy director at Cox Automotive, and Rafa Flores, chief product and growth officer at Treasure AI, to discuss how marketers are handling AI in their businesses.
Guardrails and blind spots
The conversation began by discussing the need for AI governance and guardrails to ensure it is used in positive ways.
Cogley said there’s a tendency to move fast and take chances with AI, but organizations need to slow down. “Think about what we’re trying to accomplish, how we’re trying to accomplish it, and what’s the best way to get there,” she added.
“I think now that we’ve taken 20 steps forward, we’re all taking 10 steps back to put the guardrails in place,” Cogley explained. “We’re seeing the discourse change from what we all thought it was to what it actually is.”
Flores pointed out that AI has a data blind spot, but humans do too. He said that while everyone talks about AI needing context, nobody talks about judgment.
“As a human, you have all the control of what you’re trying to actually portray, in terms of the brands you represent, and the emotions you’re trying to get folks to infer when they see and react to your brand. That role of a marketer, it’s never going to go away.”
Getting more business value from AI
Flores noted that many companies are in the early stages of implementing AI. He explained that they focus on operational efficiency when they should instead prioritize business results to advance their AI adoption journey.
The speakers discussed that while AI frees up people to be more strategic, it can be a challenge for those who are more tactical. “A lot of more tactical folks or people that are more hesitant with AI don’t even know what it can do,” Cogley explained.
To handle this, Cogley advised encouraging more exploration and gave the example of sharing with her team how she uses AI every morning for a daily summary of her emails, chats, and meetings.
