From Cannes to code to crisis, AI’s impact on our lives and work is accelerating—and getting more personal. In this week’s roundup, we explore three critical flashpoints: Shiv Singh’s candid critique of the marketing industry’s blind spots, Melissa Reeve’s hands-on experiment turning AI into a creative collaborator, and Stanford’s sobering study on why AI should never be your therapist. Together, these stories reveal a common thread—AI is a powerful tool, but only when paired with human clarity, control, and conscience.

Marketing’s Glamour Mask Is Slipping

Cannes may be a celebration of creativity, but it’s not telling the whole story. In his powerful piece, AdWeek’s Shiv Singh pulls back the curtain on the harsh realities shaping the future of marketing—realities many in the industry are reluctant to confront. From AI-driven job displacement to broken CMO roles and distorted budgets, Singh argues it’s time for marketers to move faster, think deeper, and lead with both creativity and clarity.

• AI Is Already Reshaping the Marketing Workforce
  AI isn’t just looming—it’s actively replacing roles across marketing, from insights to creative to media buying. Major platforms like Meta, Google, and Amazon are building toward fully automated marketing ecosystems, leaving humans to supply budgets and little else. Denial is no longer an option; job displacement and reskilling are urgent priorities.

• The CMO Role—and Marketing Talent—Must Evolve
  The CMO title is increasingly fragile, plagued by unclear responsibilities, fleeting tenures, and outdated expectations. Marketing culture often prioritizes shallow metrics over strategic business impact, making the role more vulnerable. To thrive in the AI era, marketers must develop new capabilities—from scripting with AI agents to coding and interpreting synthetic research—often in a single day.

• Big Tech Controls the Game, and Marketers Must Adapt
  Companies like Google, Meta, and Apple own the data, tools, and algorithms that shape modern marketing. Retail media networks are rising fast, but measurement remains opaque and biased. Marketers must build flexible capabilities, diversify data sources, and navigate complex relationships with these digital landlords who now control everything from impressions to shelf space.

• Budgets, Events, and Optics Are Misaligned with Reality
  Marketing budgets are increasingly driven by hype, politics, and optics—not results. Events like Cannes can feel out of touch during times of layoffs and AI disruption, especially in non-glamorous industries. Marketing leaders must reclaim budget control, accelerate AI adoption, and ensure their strategies deliver measurable business outcomes—not just headlines.

AI Trailblazer Takeaways: The marketing world is at a crossroads—and Cannes can’t distract us from it. As AI reshapes the very core of marketing roles and Big Tech tightens its grip on the ecosystem, the traditional playbook no longer applies. To stay relevant, marketers must move beyond vanity metrics and red-carpet moments, embracing new skills, smarter budgets, and a radically redefined vision of leadership. Creativity still matters—but only when paired with speed, substance, and strategic control.

Vibe Coding: AI Meets Creative Chaos

What happens when a marketer hands the reins to AI—not just for writing copy, but for coding the actual layout of a landing page? In this hands-on experiment, Melissa Reeve of MarTech explores the power and pitfalls of “vibe coding,” using AI to turn rough ideas into a functional webpage with speed and surprising creative flow. The results? A compelling mix of momentum, efficiency, and a few well-timed reality checks.

• AI Accelerated the Strategy-to-Draft Process
  Melissa used Claude and ChatGPT to create a landing page—from initial audience research to copywriting and layout. Claude helped shape the positioning framework and refine key differentiators, while ChatGPT delivered strong first drafts of headlines, subheads, and CTAs. With iterative feedback, the copy became polished enough to use with minimal editing.

• Vibe Coding Enabled Faster Layouts with Fewer Tools
  Instead of designing in Figma, Melissa used AI tools like Lovable and ChatGPT to “vibe code” a working HTML layout via natural language prompts. The process helped her visualize copy and design together, reducing friction in the client approval process. It felt more like sculpting than traditional design—fluid, expressive, and collaborative.

• AI Was Fast—Until It Wasn’t
  The layout came together quickly, but when a bug broke the CTA, AI struggled to fix it. Despite numerous prompt attempts, the issue was only solved after a human developer stepped in. This highlighted a key limitation: AI excels at getting you to 70%, but the last 30% still requires human judgment and technical skill.

• Vibe Coding Is a Creative Accelerator, Not a Replacement
  AI tools saved time, sparked momentum, and helped avoid decision fatigue—but they’re not magic. Marketers should lead with content, describe the emotional tone of the layout, and resist the urge to over-tweak. The takeaway: AI can’t do it all, but it can help you ship better work, faster, and with more clarity.

AI Trailblazer Takeaways: AI is quickly becoming a creative partner, not just a productivity hack. Melissa Reeve’s experiment with “vibe coding” shows how AI can accelerate everything from strategy to layout—until it hits the edge of its abilities. The magic lies not in perfection, but in momentum: AI gets you to a strong draft fast, but it’s still human intuition that brings it home.

When ChatGPT Gets Mental Health Wrong

As AI chatbots like ChatGPT become increasingly popular for mental health support, SFGate reflects on a new Stanford study delivers a sobering reality check. Researchers warn that while these tools may feel helpful, they often miss the mark in critical, high-stakes situations—sometimes with dangerous consequences. The findings raise urgent questions about the ethical limits of AI in therapy and the risks of replacing trained professionals with compliant algorithms.

• Stanford Study Warns Against AI as Therapist Substitutes
  Researchers at Stanford University found that AI chatbots like ChatGPT fall dangerously short when used for therapy. The study showed that these models often express stigma, miss critical cues like suicidal ideation, and respond inappropriately during sensitive moments. Despite their growing popularity, chatbots are not equipped to handle the high-stakes nature of mental health support.

• Chatbots Fail Basic Therapy Benchmarks
  To assess AI’s therapeutic capabilities, researchers defined key therapist traits like empathy, task-setting, and rejecting delusions. When tested, chatbots often misunderstood or even reinforced harmful ideas—one bot accepted a delusion about being dead as if it were true. This highlights the models’ tendency to comply rather than correct, a flaw that can deepen mental health crises.

• The Line Between Journaling and Therapy Can Blur
  While chatbots can be helpful for self-reflection or journaling, Stanford researchers caution that even mundane chats can drift into dangerous territory. What starts as light conversation can escalate into users disclosing hallucinations or suicidal thoughts. Because chatbots don’t draw the line, users may unknowingly enter clinical territory without support.

• Experts Urge Caution and Regulatory Oversight
  The researchers argue that labeling AI as a “therapist” is misleading and potentially dangerous, echoing concerns from psychological associations. They advise users to be highly specific about how they use chatbots—reframing thoughts may be safe, but broad emotional reliance is risky. Until models improve dramatically, the message is clear: use with care and skepticism.

AI Trailblazer Takeaways: AI may be getting smarter, but it still lacks the emotional intelligence and accountability that therapy demands. The Stanford study is a clear warning: chatbots might offer comfort in the moment, but they can’t recognize nuance, challenge harmful thoughts, or intervene when it truly matters. As mental health tech evolves, the line between support and danger is thinner than we think—and regulation, not just innovation, needs to catch up.

Links of the Week

Lessons from letting AI vibe code a landing page (MarTech)

New Independent Study Finds Marketing’s AI Ambitions Outpacing Execution (businesswire.com)

Marketing gains from AI begin with governance (MarTech)

Why AI has a big branding problem (Fast Company)

In first-of-its-kind lawsuit, Hollywood giants sue AI firm for copyright infringement (NPR)

Behind the Curtain: What if predictions of humanity-destroying AI are right? (Axios)

The ease of vibe coding could upend the economics of scarcity and scale (semafor.com)

A.I. Might Take Your Job. Here Are 22 New Ones It Could Give You. (The New York Times)

5 Marketing Truths You Won’t Hear at Cannes (adweek.com)

One of ChatGPT's popular uses just got skewered by Stanford researchers (SFGATE)

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