Dubai: In a world increasingly shaped by AI, BPG Group is making a bold bet on what makes us human, our creativity, curiosity, instincts and ability to think differently. Bringing together its teams from across the UAE, Oman and Kuwait, the leading integrated marketing communications agency and a member of the global WPP network marked its 30th annual offsite with a powerful message: technology may be transforming the industry but human ingenuity will define its future.
Held over three days at JA Hatta Fort Hotel, the offsite, themed ‘Human by Design’, was more than an annual gathering. It was an opportunity to challenge assumptions, spark fresh thinking and explore how the agency can harness the extraordinary potential of AI without losing the very qualities that make great ideas, meaningful connections and powerful communications possible.
For BPG, which has spent more than four decades helping shape the region’s marketing communications landscape, the message was clear, the future belongs not simply to those who adopt technology fastest, but to those who combine it with imagination, experience and the courage to think differently.
The programme brought together some of the industry’s most influential voices, with leaders across advertising, media, technology and communications, including Sasan Saeidi, WPP Global Client Lead; Amer El Hajj, CEO of WPP Media MENA; Toby Hoare, BPG Board Member and Global Client Lead for Unilever at WPP; Khaled Al Zanki, Founder & CEO of ETLAQ; and Faheem Ahamed, Group Chief Marketing & Communications Officer at G42.
Through a series of thought-provoking keynotes and fresh perspectives spanning creativity, media, technology and communications, industry leaders challenged BPG teams to rethink the future of their profession and the evolving role of agencies in an AI-driven world.
Discussions explored how AI is fundamentally reshaping the industry, from the way agencies approach briefs and deliver creative solutions to how they harness technology to unlock new opportunities. As AI becomes more sophisticated and accessible, the speakers reinforced a critical shift: access to AI will no longer be the competitive advantage. What matters is the human intelligence, creativity and judgement behind how it is used.
The conversations also challenged teams to look beyond efficiency and automation, exploring how AI can push creative boundaries, unlock new possibilities for innovation, sharpen strategic thinking and ultimately deliver greater value for clients.
For BPG, the message resonated strongly with its own philosophy, technology is a powerful enabler, but people remain the true differentiator. It is their collective experience, cultural intelligence, creative instincts and ability to turn complex challenges into meaningful ideas and outcomes that will continue to set the agency apart.
Avi Bhojani, Group CEO, BPG Group, said: “Thirty years of bringing our people together is something we're incredibly proud of. It reflects the spirit of BPG: a business built oninnovative out of the box thinking and execution with commitment and client-centric delivery, that great things happen when talented people come together to challenge what's possible.
"AI represents one of the most exciting transformations our industry has ever experienced. But technology alone doesn't create great ideas. People do. It's our imagination, our instincts, our understanding of people and cultures, and our willingness to challenge conventional thinking that make the difference.
"We've never been an agency that stands still. For more than four decades, we've continued to evolve, reinvent and push ourselves forward. Human by Design is about embracing the future with confidence, investing in our people and ensuring that, as technology advances, our creativity and ambition advance even further.”
From inspiration to action: 10 teams, 10 briefs, six hours to reimagine what's possible
Human by Design wasn't just about talking about the future. It was about challenging boundaries, unleashing creativity and turning bold ideas into action.
In a high energy, six-hour hackathon, ten multidisciplinary teams from across BPG’s offices and disciplines, were challenged to turn bold thinking into tangible solutions. Working against five real-world briefs spanning banking, real estate, food and beverage, tourism and retail, teams combined human insight, strategic thinking and AI-powered technology to develop workable prototypes with genuine commercial potential.
The challenge was as much about mindset as technology, breaking down silos, thinking beyond traditional agency disciplines and proving what becomes possible when different perspectives, skills and ideas collide. From initial concept to final pitch, the hackathon brought BPG's collaborative spirit to life, demonstrating how the combination of human creativity and emerging technology can unlock new opportunities for clients.
The prototypes were evaluated on four criteria: human relevance, craft, commercial viability and clarity by a jury comprising Toby Hoare, Faheem Ahamed, Khaled Al Zanki and Anup Oommen, Editor of Campaign Middle East. The jury recognised the breadth of thinking, ingenuity and speed demonstrated by the teams, while challenging them to consider how their concepts could deliver meaningful value in the real world.
Toby Hoare, BPG Board Member and Global Client Lead for Unilever at WPP, said: "AI is fundamentally reshaping the economics of our industry, but it is also opening up extraordinary opportunities for agencies willing to rethink what they do and how they create value. The real opportunity isn't simply to produce more, faster. It's to think bigger, solve more meaningful business challenges and bring together human expertise and technology in ways that weren't possible before. What we saw at Human by Design was exactly that spirit: people challenging themselves, experimenting and turning ambitious ideas into solutions with real potential."
Amer El Hajj, CEO of WPP Media MENA, said: "AI has taken real work off our desks, and most of it was work none of us got into this business to do. The question is what we do with what it gave back. In ten years every company will be human by design or human by default. Default is whatever the machines have not learned to do yet, left behind for us. Nobody chose it; we simply kept what was left. Design means deciding in advance what stays with people, and then funding it and defending it. Clients do not buy the document; they buy the people who stand behind it. Anyone can sound human now, but only a person can be held to it. That is why Human by Design is the right theme for a thirtieth anniversary. The machine will give you an answer in seconds. Knowing whether that answer is any good still takes a person who has spent years learning the difference.”
30 years of coming together, one shared ambition to keep moving forward
For BPG, the milestone offsite was also a celebration of the people and culture that have powered the agency's evolution. Founded in 1980, BPG has grown and transformed alongside the region it calls home, navigating decades of change while continuing to embrace new ideas, capabilities and opportunities.
Thirty years on, its annual offsite remains a reflection of that spirit: bringing people together, encouraging new perspectives and reinforcing the belief that the agency's greatest strength lies in its collective talent.
As the communications industry enters a new era, BPG's ambition remains firmly focused on what comes next: combining the power of technology with the ingenuity of its people to create ideas, experiences and solutions that make a meaningful difference.