There’s been no shortage of hot takes about AI and creativity floating around. Some hopeful, some existential, and many fall somewhere in between. But here’s the truth agency leaders need to hear: AI isn’t here to steal your top creative talent’s jobs. It’s here to quietly erode your margins if you’re not paying attention.

Client expectations are growing, timelines are shrinking, and budgets are staying stubbornly flat, meaning agencies can’t afford to ignore the opportunity (and the pressure) that AI brings. The creative spark still belongs to humans. But the way that work is delivered, priced, and scaled is changing fast. The real risk? Falling behind.

Agencies That Are Getting It Right

Let’s look at RocketAir. The New York-based design and strategy firm first made waves by introducing a four-day workweek – something many agencies wouldn’t dare to attempt. How? By getting smart with AI. They’ve adopted tools like ChatGPT, Notion, Otter.ai, and Lovable.dev to streamline everything from research and project management to early-stage creative prototyping. These tools aren’t replacing the work, they’re speeding up the admin, cutting out the grunt work, and leaving their team with more time and headspace to do what they do best: creative thinking.

But RocketAir isn’t stopping there. They’re building their own AI-powered design intelligence platform aimed at helping enterprise clients bring more data into their creative decisions. It’s a clear signal that the agencies that thrive in the AI era will be the ones that use it to deliver more value, not just more content.

Then there’s WPP. The global agency network is going big with its AI strategy, teaming up with NVIDIA to develop a generative AI-enabled content engine built on NVIDIA Omniverse. It’s a tech-forward mouthful, but the application is simple. It helps creative teams produce high-quality, brand-accurate content faster, cheaper, and at scale. By connecting tools from partners like Adobe and Getty Images, WPP’s new platform allows creatives to generate photorealistic visuals from simple text prompts. That means less reliance on costly shoots and traditional production timelines, and more speed without sacrificing quality.

What This Means for Agencies Everywhere

AI isn’t a threat to your creative team. If anything, it’s their new best mate that takes care of the repetitive stuff so they can focus on the work that really moves the needle. But if you’re running an agency, you can’t afford to sit this one out.

The agencies that will win the next decade are the ones that treat AI as a strategic asset. That means investing in training, building the right internal workflows, and rethinking how you price and package your services in an AI-accelerated world. Clients are already expecting faster turnaround times, more personalised content, and smarter use of data. AI makes all of that possible, but only if you know how to use it.

The Bottom Line

Creative talent isn’t going anywhere. But the way work gets done and what clients are willing to pay for is changing fast. AI won’t replace your creatives, but it might just eat your margins if you ignore it. If you're ready to future-proof your agency with the right talent and operational strategy, Harmonic can help. Get in touch today to start the conversation.