Cannes Lions 2026: The Future of Partner Marketing

Cannes Lions 2026 made one thing clear: the most important conversations in marketing are no longer happening in silos. They are happening at the intersection of creativity, AI, data and trust. 

For Rakuten Advertising, this year’s festival was a valuable opportunity to listen, learn and connect with some of the brightest minds across all aspects of marketing. The atmosphere focused on building relationships, networking, and shared learning about the current state and future of marketing and creativity.  As the industry rethinks how to drive growth, the future will belong to marketers who can balance performance with brand building, automation with human judgement and scale with authenticity. 

It was also a privilege for Rakuten Advertising to support key industry moments at Cannes, including our sponsorship of the Performance Marketing World Powerlist Watch Party and the Martech Record leadership lunch and happy hour. These events created space for meaningful conversations in the partnership industry. Deepti Vashee, Senior Director of Global Retail at Rakuten Advertising stated that “Cannes was an incredible opportunity to strengthen relationships with our clients, hear first hand what’s top of mind for some of the world’s biggest brands, and come away with fresh ideas, stronger partnerships, and real excitement about where marketing is headed next.”  

Cannes Lions 2026 Bringing Measurement and Incrementality to the Forefront  

Measurement and the art of data science remained one of the strongest themes throughout Cannes sessions and speakers. Brands are looking for better ways to connect multiple data sources, turn insight into action and understand what is truly driving business outcomes. Within that, incrementality and marketing effectiveness continue to be top priorities as marketers continue to face headwinds navigating and tracking new customer journeys in AI environments. 

Performance marketers are no diving much deeper than surface-level reporting than ever before. They want to know which activities are creating real value, influencing customer decisions and contributing to growth across the funnel, especially in creator marketing. 

Affiliate and partner marketing are well placed to help bring clarity to those answers. With the right measurement approach and data insights, brands gain visibility into campaign performance beyond a single channel, building a clearer picture of contribution, efficiency and impact. More importantly, they can better understand how partnerships support both demand creation and demand capture over time. 

Cannes Lions reinforced that data only matters when it leads to better decisions. The most effective marketers are combining measurement with context, using insight not  

simply to optimise channels in isolation, but to make smarter strategic choices. Serving as a powerful reminder that partner marketing should be viewed not just as a performance driver, but as a measurable growth strategy that supports broader and even more unique or nuanced marketing objectives. 

Trust Is Built Through Experience 

Trust also stood out as one of the defining themes of the week. Across sessions and conversations, one idea kept coming through clearly: trust must be earned by brands, and consistent throughout channels and mediums. 

In partner marketing, the creators, publishers and partners a brand chooses to work with play an important role in shaping how trust is experienced by consumers. These relationships are not simply routes to market. They are signals of credibility, relevance and value. 

This is one reason creator marketing continues to gain momentum. Brands are increasingly integrating creators across both brand and performance activity because creators can deliver authenticity, community and influence in ways that resonate. When creator strategies are supported by strong measurement and trusted partnerships, they become even more powerful. 

For brands navigating a changing media and consumer landscape, partnerships offer a way to build trust through real connections. Whether through creators, content partners or loyalty environments, the value lies in showing up in places where audiences are already engaged and receptive. 

AI Is an Enabler, Not a Replacement 

AI featured in nearly every conversation at Cannes, but the discussion has clearly matured. The focus is no longer on novelty, it is on practical application, responsible use and the role AI can play in helping marketers work smarter and not lose their authenticity. 

The clearest takeaway was that AI is an enabler. It can help teams move faster, uncover insight, streamline execution and create more space for strategic thinking. But it is not a substitute for human creativity, experience or judgement. In a market where AI is becoming standard, original thinking is what will continue to set brands apart and continue to earn authentic trust with their consumers. 

That perspective is especially relevant in partner marketing. Technology can improve efficiency and scale, but strong partnership strategies still depend on people. It takes human understanding to identify the right partners, shape authentic collaborations and ensure activity aligns with brand goals and audience needs. 

At Rakuten Advertising, we see AI as a solution that can enhance marketing performance while supporting better decision-making. It can help marketers create faster, pull quicker reporting, and learn more relevant programme insights. But the real competitive advantage still comes from combining this innovation with human insight to create what’s new and what’s next. 

Senior Director of Global Retail Sales, EMEA Paul Mazouer put it best, “AI innovation removes operational overheads so teams can spend more time being strategic. Conversational AI approaches to campaign management exemplify this. Solutions like Rakuten Advertising’s Mirai, remove the manual configuration, handling the complexities autonomously, giving partnership teams the ability to focus on strategy and unique partner relationships.”  

Creativity and Strategy Must Work Together 

One of the strongest messages from Cannes was that differentiation comes from combining original thinking with clear strategic intent. Brands need ideas that stand out, but they also need those ideas to be grounded in the right partnerships, the right audiences and the right outcomes. 

That is especially true in affiliate and partner marketing. The most effective programmes are not built on scale alone. They are built on thoughtful strategy, strong partner selection and creative collaboration that reflects how people actually discover, trust and buy. Whether working with creators, content partners, loyalty publishers or other performance-driving partners, success comes from connecting brand objectives with partner strengths in a way that feels relevant and authentic. 

Consumer stories, trusted voices and meaningful experiences still create stronger brand connections than highly optimised advertising alone. But to deliver real business value, those creative opportunities need to be matched with measurement, planning and a clear view of incrementality. 

This is where partner marketing delivers its greatest value. It brings together creativity and strategy in a way that helps brands build demand, strengthen trust and drive measurable outcomes. 

The Future of Partnership & Creativity for Brands 

As the conversations at Cannes continue to shape the year ahead, one thing feels increasingly certain: marketers do not need to choose between brand and performance, automation and authenticity, or creativity and accountability. The brands that will lead are those that can connect these priorities through smart, trusted partnerships. 

That is the opportunity for our industry, and Rakuten Advertising is excited to help brands realise it both today and tomorrow.