AKQA wins the Grand Prix and two Gold Lions at Cannes Festival of Creativity

AKQA has been awarded the Cannes Lions Digital Craft Grand Prix for Nike’s Never Done Evolving and two Gold Lions for Congresso em Foco’s Transparency Card at the International Festival of Creativity 2023.

To commemorate Serena William’s 27th and final year as a professional athlete, Nike and AKQA harnessed the power of AI and advanced machine learning to create Never Done Evolving, displaying Serena’s evolution of championship like never before. Pitted against her former self, the final gameplay of Serena 1999 vs. Serena 2017 was broadcasted to the public via a YouTube livestream, reaching over 1.69 million of Nike’s subscribers.

Winning two Gold Lions for Congresso em Foco’s Transparency Card underscores the importance of work that addresses vital societal issues.

Every year, Brazil loses about $40 billion to corrupt political spending, data that is accessible to Brazilians but complex to monitor. AKQA partnered with Congresso em Foco, an independent Brazilian digital news portal, to create the Transparency Card. Designed to be seamless, the Transparency Card turns every phone’s digital wallet into an information tool, syncing real-time data from a governmental site to track when and how public money is being spent by politicians.

The project’s innovative approach and dedication to transparency has upwards of 430,000 active cards and 20 million notifications sent to date.

Awarded a Bronze Lion for Abebe Bikila’s Neo Icarus signifies the prominent impact of using digital technology, transcending barriers of access to music, art and culture.

Two thousand years later, the myth repeats itself. Launching the Brazilian rapper’s new album, AKQA Coala.LAB presents a modern Icarus, where the metropolis becomes the stage for modern tragedies. Using the art of augmented reality, Abebe Bikila sings an unreleased track embedded in a framed oil painting, using the same painting techniques from Ancient Greece, through an immersive experience.

The painting was exhibited for three days at the Art Museum of Rio de Janeiro, receiving more than 6,000 visitors, and Abebe Bikila garnered over 2 million views in 24 hours.

Digital Agency Global Network of the Year 2023

In May 2023, AKQA was named Digital Agency Global Network of the Year in Campaign’s Global Agency of the Year Awards, recognising the world’s most accomplished agencies.

Judges were impressed by the “excellent business performance, exceptional industry contribution, and extreme creativity of work”.

The Awards are judged by a panel of global and regional chief marketing officers, with the process audited by PwC.

Top Ten Global Most Loved Workplace 2023

In June 2023, AKQA was recognised by Newsweek as a Top Ten Global Most Loved Workplace. The certification is backed by analysis from the Best Practice Institute.

Newsweek commented: “AKQA’s culture is built on trust, recognition and accountability for living the company values. The culture calls for actions over words, stresses transparency and respect, and encourages collaboration and growth. Employees are empowered to create their own work through the AKQA Framework. There are ample opportunities for employees to collaborate with the aim of making the customer’s life better.”