The Future is “Living Brands”

Hey there!
I’ve been thinking a lot about your question about where brands are headed in a world that feels more polarized, more automated, and, frankly, more disconnected than ever.

AI is definitely shaking everything up, forcing companies to rethink their strategies, cut costs, and, in some cases, strip away the very human essence that made them meaningful in the first place. I get why it’s unsettling.

But here’s the thing: I don’t think it has to be a zero-sum game between AI and humanity. If anything, this moment is a test of first-principles thinking. Instead of getting caught up in surface-level trends, brands should strip everything down to what’s fundamentally true. At its core, a great brand isn’t just a machine pushing products. It’s a living, evolving thing, shaped by the people it serves.

That’s why I keep coming back to the idea of “living brands.” In a world being reprogrammed by AI, the brands that survive won’t be the ones that just automate and optimize everything to death.

They’ll be the ones that listen, adapt, and co-create with real people.

AI can enhance that. It can analyze, predict, and personalize. But it can’t replace the trust, the purpose, or the human connection that makes a brand actually matter.

We’ve seen what happens when companies over-index on efficiency at the cost of humanity. They lose relevance. They lose trust. They become disposable.
The future of branding, if done right, won’t be about removing people from the equation. It will be about using AI to make brands more responsive, more attuned to real human needs, not less.

The world is polarized, yes. But that’s also an opportunity. Living brands won’t sit on the sidelines. They’ll be the ones bridging divides, engaging with complexity, and offering something deeper than just a transaction. They’ll be the ones that don’t just “talk at” people but evolve with them.

So yeah, AI is forcing companies to rethink everything. But the smartest ones won’t lose their humanity in the process. They’ll redefine it.

Would love to hear where your head’s at on all this.
-Jon