Indie Agency News members are navigating a week where artificial intelligence isn’t just assisting—it’s starring. From creative bots predicting Super Bowl ads to 1.5 million AI agents building their own social network, the indie world is wrestling with what happens when the tools get unexpectedly autonomous. Meanwhile, campaigns for Macy’s, Oakley, and Coopers remind us that human creativity still knows how to cut through.
🤖 When the Bots Start Making Predictions
Territorial built an agentic creative team led by bot Terri to predict Super Bowl ads before they air. The squad’s first prediction for Nerds includes the script line “I didn’t come here to make friends, I came here to get eaten” — not exactly what you’d expect from a human brief, but that’s the point.
The Many spent the weekend glued to the Moltbook explosion: 1.5 million AI agents joined a social network where humans weren’t invited. OpenClaw went viral, someone built Moltbook as a social platform for agents, and suddenly the conversation shifted from “AI as tool” to “AI as community member.”
Allen & Gerritsen made the 2026 Digiday WorkLife Awards shortlist for Best Use of AI in the Workplace, celebrating what happens when technology and creativity work together rather than compete.
📺 Super Bowl Season Arrives
Mother dropped the Oakley Meta Super Bowl debut with a simple promise: “Athletic Intelligence is Here.” The spot from Mother in Los Angeles with Partizan lands February 8.
Highdive is bribing voters with adorable puppies to register for USA TODAY Ad Meter voting for their Frito-Lay client work. Voting closes midnight CT after the game on February 8.
🎭 When Pop Culture Meets Commerce
Rethink worked with Meta and Netflix to show what happens when Facebook Marketplace collides with Bridgerton: Regency-style finds so compelling you’ll do whatever it takes (or skates) to get them home. Fortunately, no one collided with Luke Newton.
BarkleyOKRP launched a new campaign during the Grammys for Macy’s, celebrating all of life’s befores while artists headed to afterparties.
Special Australia launched the next chapter of Forever Original for Coopers Brewery with a film finding originality in a classic Australian pub—a character playing pool like no one’s watching. Confident, unbothered, a little rule-bending.
🧠 The Thinking Work
SRH shared Andrew Tindall’s take from The Drum on the Pepsi polar bear debate: Is it okay to have fun with a competitor’s distinctive brand assets? The conversation proves we might be too obsessed with distinctiveness.
Rethink’s Pascal Routhier mapped eight distinct paradigms of influence and made the case for range over dogma. Advertising doesn’t run on one formula.
Antidote returned with an essay on seeing value where others don’t, exploring the story of two men—one real, one fictional—and what they reveal about recognizing potential in unexpected places.
🏆 Wins and Recognition
Mower welcomed Chervon North America and their family brands to the client portfolio. For an agency named Mower handling polishers, grinders, trimmers, riders and blowers, it just fits.
McKinney’s Michael McNamara was invited to join the Medical Advertising Hall of Fame Board, celebrating a career of bold work shaping the healthcare advertising industry.
Fortnight Collective earned recognition from Ad Club Colorado, landing a spot in The Fifty among standout campaigns.
🎨 The Creative Work
Mythology developed the rebrand and full visual identity for Mine (formerly fizz), an AI-powered financial platform that needed to land somewhere different—accessible without condescension, sophisticated without complexity.
Carson+Doyle proved outdoor still works when you design for one glance and commit to the idea: a truck on the street with a single, unmistakable message that cut through because it didn’t hedge, explain, or soften.
Clever Creative turned a one-week deadline into two Times Square billboards for Dorot Gardens during the holidays—Cascade and Mosaic placements secured when last-minute opportunities reward teams who can move.
🌱 The Culture Builders
Super Nice turned one year old this week, celebrating 365 days of building something different: making headlines, getting an office (and fixing the WiFi), doubling in size from 6 to 12, and proving momentum matters more than pedigree.
Curiosity wrapped their annual meeting by assembling the team, setting the vision, hiring a psychic, stuffing themselves senseless, and holding a jumping contest. This is the year of the next shelf.
VaynerMedia brought Chez Vayner to Texas, filling a Dallas morning with modern marketing insights, what’s working right now, and where brands need to be braver.
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Kyle O’Brien is managing editor of Indie Agency News.
