NEW YORK, NY, November 12, 2026 (EZ Newswire) — The AARON Awards, the first awards program dedicated to AI creativity in advertising, today opened entries for its 2027 edition with a new slate of industry-specific categories built for a market that has moved fast. In its first year, the program drew over a thousand entries from 45 countries, and the largest category was spec work: ads made for brands that never asked for them. This year, organizers expect commissioned brand work to take the lead.
The shift reflects what agencies and brands are seeing on the ground. AI is no longer a side experiment in advertising; it is part of how campaigns get briefed, produced, and shipped. The question is no longer whether AI can make an ad, but whether the ad is any good.
“There’s a massive difference between simply making something and making something great,” said PJ Pereira, co-founder of SILVERSIDE AI and jury president of the AARON Awards. “The AARON Awards celebrate real makers who are committed to raising the standards of AI in advertising. They refuse to applaud something just because it was made with AI. They’re using the technology to push the craft forward, and that’s exactly the kind of work we should be celebrating.”
Founded by Marie-Céline Merret Wirström and Vinne Schifferstein Vidal, the AARON Awards is a female-founded initiative helping define what creative excellence looks like in the age of AI. Since launching in 2025, the program has grown into a global platform for recognizing the artists, agencies, and brands pushing the boundaries of AI-powered creativity.
New categories for a maturing industry
For 2027, the AARON Awards introduces categories for specific industries, including automotive, fashion, beauty, retail, and technology, recognizing that AI creative work for a car brand faces different challenges than work for a beauty brand. They sit alongside craft and technical categories such as Hybrid Production, Real-Time Experiences, Workflows, and Key Frames. The Spec Ad category returns for independent and self-initiated work.
“Last year, spec advertising was our biggest category. It let artists show what was possible without waiting for a client brief,” said Vinne Schifferstein Vidal, co-founder of the AARON Awards and AI-production studio, MC&V. “But the market has moved. We’re seeing more AI work commissioned by major brands and more creative professionals making AI central to commercial production. We expect this year’s entries to reflect that.”
Entries will be judged on creative excellence, originality, craft, and meaningful use of AI. Commercial categories will also be judged on strategic relevance and results.
“As generative AI becomes part of everyday creative workflows, there’s more room to take risks and push the craft further,” said Marie-Céline Merret Wirström, co-founder and curator of the AARON Awards. “We want to see work that surprises us and takes brand storytelling somewhere new.”
A jury drawn from the industry’s top creative shops
New to the 2027 jury: PJ Pereira (SILVERSIDE AI), Theresa Ong (Meta), Vix Jagger (Droga5), Maria Devereux (Accenture Song), Charlotte Glennon (Colenso), Caio Del Manto (Euphoria Creative), and Kavan Cardoza (Phantom X), winner of the 2026 AARON Laureate.
Returning judges include Wesley ter Haar (Monks), Craig Elimeliah (Code and Theory), Gabe Michael (ElevenLabs), Arlyn Panopio (Envato), Hugo Barbera (HumAIn), Simon Meyer (Promptr), Chrissie Cremers (AIgency AMS), and Rogier Vijverberg (Superheroes).
Envato and Lighthouse AI Academy return as program partners.
Free to enter through Jan. 15
The AARON Awards is open to independent AI artists, creative studios, production companies, agencies, and in-house brand teams worldwide.
- Free entry deadline: Jan. 15, 2027
- Final entry deadline: Feb. 28, 2027
- Winners announced: At the global AARON Awards show, mid-April 2027
Enter at aaronawards.com.
About AARON Awards
The AARON Awards is the first global awards program dedicated to creative excellence powered by artificial intelligence in advertising and brand innovation. Founded in 2025, it recognizes the artists, creatives, studios, and teams combining human imagination with AI to advance commercial creativity. The program is named after AARON, one of the earliest AI art systems. Its inaugural 2026 edition drew entries from 45 countries. Learn more at aaronawards.com.
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SOURCE: AARON Awards
