Advertising and AI in Marketing

By the Terrain desk. The same companies laying off staff and citing AI are also the ones telling investors business is getting better. That is not a coincidence you should let slide. On 1 September, The Financial Times told the market that WPP intends to cut up to 1,000 more jobs by the end of the year. That adds to about 11,000 roles already removed since the start of 2025, bringing headcount to 97,388 as of 30 June. That same week, chief executive Cindy Rose told reporters WPP’s new business win rate had jumped compared to last year, highlighting retained clients like Huawei, Tesco and L’Oréal. Read that again. A company claiming to win more work is still letting a thousand more people go. That detail is the one almost everyone overlooked. Most coverage brushed off the cuts as routine cost-saving. But for agency leaders, this is not just another statistic; it is a test of vision: What kind of pressure drives a company to shrink its team while it is winning, not losing? What bold moves…