AI and the 2027 American Advertising Awards

3 hours ago

3 min read

Made with AI? Say so.

If AI helped with any of your work last year, you're not alone. I've been using AI tools for more than two years, and these days I'm building AI agents at work. Some days they're brilliant. Other days I spend more time fixing their work than it would have taken to do it myself.

This year, for the first time, the American Advertising Awards ask about it. Every entry now has one new question: was AI used in this work? Answering yes won't count against you. I wanted to share what changed so there are no surprises when you enter.

What changed

AAF National made two changes this year:

Every entry asks whether AI was used. You'll answer the question as you enter each piece.
If more than half of an entry is AI-generated, it goes in the AI categories: 065A through 065D for professionals and S32A through S32D for students.

National is honest that the 50% line is partly a judgment call. They wanted to give everyone a clear starting point this year, and they plan to revisit it in future years.

What this means for you

You're welcome to use AI. If your team wrote, designed, or shot the piece and AI helped along the way, answer yes and enter the work in the category that fits it best, just like always.

If AI made most of what the judges will see, enter it in one of the AI categories: Professionals

065A AI Copywriting
065B AI Creative Element(s)
065C AI Copywriting Campaign
065D AI Creative Element(s) Campaign

Students

S32A AI Copywriting
S32B AI Copywriting Campaign
S32C AI Creative Element
S32D AI Creative Elements Campaign

Professionals who used AI to build something new, like an interactive experience, may also want to look at 064, Innovative Use of Interactive/Technology.

Not sure which side of the line your piece is on? I'd start with who wrote the final copy, who made the final images, and how much of the finished piece came straight from an AI tool. If you're still unsure, send it my way, and we'll figure it out together. Students, please check with your professor first, since some classes enter together.

What hasn't changed

Everything else works the way it always has:

You need the rights to everything in your entry. When you sign the entry form, you confirm the rights were obtained for anything that isn't original, no matter how it was made.
Copyright infringement or plagiarism, even by accident, disqualifies an entry, and the entry fees aren't refunded.
If a question comes up about an entry, you may be asked for documentation, so hang on to your working files.
Professional work must have first appeared in 2026 and been created in the Inland Empire. For students, class projects and work made for this competition count.

Questions? Please ask.

I'd much rather answer a question in December than see a great piece land in the wrong category. Email me at HelloJohnMcCarthy@Gmail.com or call (909) 263-0454. If I don't know the answer, I'll check with District 15 so everyone gets the same answer.

I'd also love to see you at one of our coffees. The next two are Thursday, Nov. 12 at Back to the Grind in Riverside and Thursday, Nov. 19 at Panera Bread in Rancho Cucamonga, both 5:30 to 7. We'll have more coffees in December and January, plus noon Zooms.

The dates

Early deadline: Friday, Jan. 22, 2027. After that, a $10 late fee applies to each entry.
Final deadline: Friday, Jan. 29, 2027. We can't offer extensions this year.
Enter at InlandEmpireAAF.com. AAF members, ask me for your discount code before you check out.