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Leveraging AI for Communication Breakthroughs
- Protect Reputation
- Operationalize AI
- Upskill Teams
- Scale Strategy
- Create Agentic Workflows
- Test New Tools
- Automate & Elevate
- Prove ROI
- Wow the C-suite
Nearly every company is using AI. Yet few have integrated it enterprise-wide, and fewer still report meaningful ROI. The real gap is between teams experimenting with prompts - and those embedding AI into workflows, dashboards and executive decisions.
AI Horizons 2026 - powered by Ragan's Center for AI Strategy (CAIS) - is where that gap closes. You’ll move beyond experimentation to operationalize AI by connecting copilots, agentic tools and analytics into one strategic approach that drives measurable gains in revenue, reputation and risk mitigation. Join us for the clarity, confidence and plan you need to stop watching change - and start shaping it.
As an attendee, you'll have access to:
✔ ADVISOR ACCESS – One-on-ones and AMA roundtables with Center for AI Strategy advisors
✔ PROPRIETARY RESEARCH – Industry-first "State of AI and Communications Study"
✔ PROPRIETARY TOOLS – AI Readiness Assessment, with live advisor guidance
Everything You Need to Elevate Your AI Game — All in One Event
THE BEST LEARNING EXPERIENCE
- Industry leading speakers vetted and ready to share
- Choose from 24+ workshops, sessions, firesides and more
- Get access to all the speaker presentations
- Dig into the post-event bonus content and extra resources for attendees only
- Hundreds of peers in attendance to brainstorm with
- Discover new tools and technology from our industry partners
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Harness AI for enhanced creativity and efficiency
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Optimize workflows with intelligence optimization
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Revolutionize content creation and distribution
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Inspire innovation and integrate ethical AI practices
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Zero in on data-driven insights for better decision-making
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Orchestrate seamless human-AI collaboration
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Navigate future trends and stay ahead of the curve
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Scale your impact with AI-powered solutions
FEATURED SPEAKERS
24 PRACTICAL “HOW TO” AND
“WHAT’S NEXT” SESSIONS”
Don’t Be Left Behind.
Secure your spot today. Let’s chart the next AI horizon together in sunny Ft. Lauderdale.
AGENDA
Over half of Google searches now end without a click. As Google’s AI Overviews, Gemini, Perplexity and ChatGPT serve answers directly, the mission shifts from ranking high to being cited. Miss that change and you lose traffic, authority and control over how audiences—and algorithms—talk about your brand. This workshop gives communicators an AI-first content strategy, showing how Generative Engine Optimization (GEO) turns citable content into brand-reputation snippets inside AI summaries. You’ll learn:
- GEO Foundations: Why “zero-click” search threatens visibility—and how GEO differs from SEO.
- Content AI Cites: How to build structured, multi-format content that LLMs tend to favor (lists, tables, original research)—plus which formats surface most in AI summaries.
- Optimization Toolkit: How to use tools like WordLift and SparkToro to boost your AI Overviews, Gemini and Perplexity mentions.
- Reputation Safeguards: Governance tips to catch hallucinations, embed attribution and align with compliance guidelines.
- Proof and ROI: How to build a GEO dashboard that connects AI citations to business goals.
✓ CASE STUDIES: We’ll share real examples of brands that earned top AI citations—and what happened when they didn’t.
✓ INTERACTIVE SPRINT: In breakouts, you’ll revamp one of your own pages or press releases into a GEO-ready snippet, test it live and vote on the version most likely to earn citations.
In 2026, you don’t have seconds to earn attention; you have heartbeats. If production takes weeks but your content is judged in two seconds, you’ve already lost the scroll. This interactive workshop will pull back the curtain on the frontier models redefining how corporate teams create high-caliber content at scale, without a studio, massive budget, or technical learning curve. In this hands-on session, we'll help you:
- Navigate the Leading Engines: Get a side-by-side comparison of the world’s top video models to understand what's usable, what's hype and which platforms are truly enterprise-safe.
- Master the "Director" Method: Move past basic prompting and learn the precise vocabulary that controls lighting, camera paths and "physics" to ensure your output looks intentional and on-brand.
- Scale Without Burnout: Discover ways to turn a single executive update into a global, multilingual campaign in minutes.
- Repurpose Effortlessly: See how to transform a long webinar or town hall into a library of share-worthy shorts.
- Build the Executive Case: Leave with a repeatable AI video blueprint and a performance scorecard to defend your strategy and ROI to leadership.
✓ CASE STUDIES: We’ll share AI videos from other orgs so you can apply their best practices and lessons learned to your own use cases.
✓ INTERACTIVE SPRINT: Using your phone, you'll transform a standard memo into a high-energy short, leaving the session equipped to immediately implement what you've learned.
Agentic AI is surging and is set to hit $50B by 2030 (Grand View Research). Yet most orgs just aren’t ready. Wait too long and there’s a chance your comms workflows could get automated by bots or even taken over by IT or marketing—without your team’s input. This workshop helps you get ahead with a plan to 1) spot high-impact tasks, 2) build agents to manage them and 3) leave with an agentic framework you can show your boss—along with talking points to secure executive buy-in and keep communications in the lead. What we’ll cover:
- Agentic 101: Key definitions, autonomy levels and why true agents differ from custom GPTs and chatbots.
- Agentic Framework: A practical, plug-and-play model for identifying agent-ready tasks, defining guardrails and sequencing autonomy—so you can design agentic workflows without building one live.
- Governance and Guardrails: How to set approvals, data tiers and brand-safety checks to keep agents compliant, ethical and on-brand.
- Change Management Playbook: Templates, training tips and stakeholder strategies to earn trust, avoid turf wars and keep comms in the lead.
- ROI and Roadmap: How to set KPIs and draft a 90-day pilot plan that gets funded and scales responsibly.
✓ CASE STUDIES: Examples of agentic pilots that pre-wrote townhall answers, automated monitoring and saved up to 10 hours a week—plus one cautionary tale.
✓ INTERACTIVE SPRINT: Use a heat-map worksheet to rank workflows by effort and impact—then map your top pick to the agentic framework so you leave with a “build next” plan to share internally.
Join us at the hotel bar as we get to know each other at this casual cash bar meet-up and kick off the conference in style!
If AI answers are becoming your audience’s first stop, how discoverable is your brand today? Learn how AI Search is reshaping audience behavior and the steps you can take to evolve your content and press release strategy. What you’ll learn:
- GEO & AEO Explained: How AI Search is changing audience behavior — and the new rules of discoverability.
- Beyond SEO: Practical techniques to optimize press releases and brand content for generative and answer engines.
- Multichannel Amplification: How earned media, owned content and AI visibility now reinforce each other.
- Intelligent Measurement: A first look at Cision’s next-gen reporting that surfaces brand presence across AI Search platforms.
Over 95% of organizations have yet to report any real ROI for their implementation (MIT). Why? Because few have a plan that ties it to purpose, risk, culture and measurable business value. Comms sits at the center of that gap. In this keynote, Charlene Li shares a leadership blueprint to win with AI: Grounding decisions in purpose and values, identifying where AI strengthens competitive advantage, setting practical guardrails people will follow and building simple measurement loops so leaders can see progress. Expect real cases and tools leaders can apply right away. You’ll leave with:
- Strategy on a page: How to anchor AI efforts to brand purpose and business goals—plus a test to kill misaligned pilots.
- Ownership clarified: Who should lead AI and how comms partners with tech, HR and legal to scale responsibly.
- Trust and guardrails: A lightweight governance model you can roll out without slowing teams.
- Bonus: Free PDF/e-book download of “Winning with AI” to keep the momentum post-event.
Most communications teams now use AI somewhere, but few can answer a simple question: How ready are we, really? Only 17% of communicators are involved in shaping AI governance, and over half say they're unsure of their AI strategy (Ragan's 2025 Benchmark Report). That uncertainty stalls progress and leaves value on the table. In this interactive session led by Samantha Stark, CAIS advisor and founder of Phyusion, you'll get an exclusive first look at a new AI Readiness Framework developed for Ragan's Center for AI Strategy (CAIS). Through interactive exercises, you'll identify where your team may fall across maturity stages and personas, and more importantly, what separates teams that are struggling from those that are scaling. You'll learn:
- The Ecosystem Model: Why AI readiness isn't about tools. It's eight interconnected dimensions, from leadership alignment to measurement, and imbalance in any one can stall your progress.
- The Four Stages and Seven Personas: A new way to understand where your team is and what "the next right step" looks like for your specific situation.
- The Pivot Points: What teams at each stage should focus on to accelerate, and the common traps that keep them stuck.
Nearly all comms and marketing teams already use AI—but few have figured out how to scale it responsibly without breaking trust, budgets or jobs. In this candid panel, senior leaders from global brands go beyond hype to share what actually worked, what stalled and what they’d do differently heading into 2026. Expect some disagreement, real data and a clear-eyed look at how AI can become a workforce multiplier—not a liability—when governance, ethics and talent strategy move as fast as the tech. You’ll hear:
- Big wins, real warnings: How NY Life and other leaders moved beyond experimentation—sharing real data, live initiatives and 2026 AI roadmaps that connect pilots to performance.
- Rewriting the org chart: Why some leaders see AI-driven role changes as overdue—and others warn of trust erosion and talent backlash if it’s mishandled.
- Responsible by design: How leaders embed fairness, transparency and human oversight into AI workflows, vendor choices and everyday use—not just policy decks.
- Spend smarter: How teams reassess AI agency and platform spend to identify AI in-sourcing opportunities and reinvest savings where they matter most.
- Proof, not promises: The KPIs that helped execs stay in control—cost avoided, speed gained, sentiment shifted and risk reduced.
Internal communicators aren’t short on ideas — they’re short on time. Administrative work like planning, approvals, rewrites, and coordination quietly erodes space for strategy and leadership alignment. In this session, you’ll meet a new model for internal communications: the AI colleague. Embedded directly into IC workflows, it reduces friction, improves clarity and helps teams move from reactive execution to strategic impact without compromising governance or quality.
In this session, you’ll:
- Understand why IC burnout isn’t a talent issue, but a systems and workflow problem.
- Learn how an AI colleague can reduce admin across planning, drafting, approvals and channel coordination.
- See how enterprise-ready AI supports governance, brand voice, and human judgment — not replaces them.
- Leave with a practical vision for shifting IC from execution-heavy work to strategic influence.
A Center for AI Strategy (CAIS) advisor puts agentic AI under the microscope—then invites three brave volunteers to toss their gnarliest, most-repetitive comms tasks in the hot seat. The room picks one to tackle live and together we’ll prove how fast an agent can go from sticky note to working mockup—no coding required. This isn’t a pre-con workshop re-run—it’s a real-time demo communicators can use right away. Together we’ll:
- Pick the Pain Point: Three volunteers pitch their most repetitive, time-draining comms tasks—and the room chooses one.
- Live Agent Build: The advisor demos a no-code, drag-and-drop agent builder live so everyone sees the nuts and bolts.
- Add Guardrails: Tables vote on safeguards like brand voice, legal or bias checks—and the top picks get added to the agent.
- Show the ROI: We’ll run the agent on sample data, project the results and tally minutes saved—proving its impact in real time.
- Takeaway Pitch Deck: Scan a QR code for a one-slide deck to pitch your own agent back at work.
Some predictions claim 80% of enterprises will be running GenAI by 2026. With federal and state laws ramping up and enforcement of infringing or deceptive uses of AI on the rise—it’s clear that strong governance protections are no longer optional. In this lightning table talk with your peers facilitated by a Center for AI Strategy advisor, you’ll get a crash course on the laws that get brands into hot water and the practices, policies and contract considerations that keep them out.. Together, we’ll cover:
- Regulation FAQ: Our advisor will share a download of the current state of AI enforcement and top tips for buttoning up AI policies and contracts with third parties.
- 2-Minute Table Swap: Our advisor will pose key questions about how your organization handles AI for you to discuss and trade best practices with your peers.
- Room Roundup: The session will end with a roundup of “Dos and Donts” and you’ll leave with a checklist for your contract toolkit.
Over half of communicators are unsure of or uninvolved in their company’s AI strategy (Ragan 2025 Benchmark Report). Surprisingly, that gap is actually an opening: Whoever controls adoption data controls the story. Join this panel as they share how they capture hours saved, dollars won and engagement gains. You’ll see the AI dashboards they present to execs and leave with templates you can use to own AI metrics and carve out a role in AI strategy organization. You’ll learn:
- Adoption Data Hub: How to capture AI usage rates, hours saved and dollars earned across functions.
- Dashboard Blueprint: How to combine LLM logs, CMS stats and email/intranet analytics into one real-time view.
- ROI and ROE: Easy ways to tie AI outputs to revenue and engagement gains with simple formulas.
- Storytelling with Stats: Tips to turn raw numbers into budget-winning visuals that execs love.
- Scenario Planning: How to turn today’s AI results into simple “what if” projections that help you brief leaders on future risks and opportunities.
Generative answer panels now appear in over a quarter of Google queries and AI-first browsers like Perplexity scrape the web in ways SEO never anticipated. If your stories aren’t cited—or are misquoted—audiences may never land on your site. This session focuses on content distribution, not creation—where AI engines pull their facts, how to seed those sources and which new metrics replace page-one rank. You’ll learn:
- AI Search FAQ: How Google AI Overviews, Perplexity, Copilot Search and others select citations—and where your content fits.
- Citation Audit: A quick test to see how AI engines reference your brand and competitors today.
- Source-Seeding: How to place research, FAQs and listicles on LLM-friendly platforms like Reddit, Wikipedia and YouTube to boost pickup.
- Monitoring: Free or low-cost ways to track mentions, catch hallucinations and request fixes fast.
- What’s Next: How to prep content for voice, in-car and AR search—plus new KPIs like “answer share” and “citation sentiment” to prove value.
AI has solved the problem of content creation—now anyone can generate a policy, update or email in seconds. But in a world of infinite content, context is the new scarcity. This session challenges HR and Communications leaders to move beyond "feeding the machine" and start solving two critical problems: Equitable Reach (infrastructure) and Narrative Resilience (messaging). This session will introduce the concept of "Model-Stable Writing" — a new way to craft communication that ensures your core narrative survives when AI tools summarize, paraphrase and redistribute your words to the frontline.
Key takeaways include:
- The reach reality: Why proactive, multi-channel infrastructure must replace the passive "employees will find it on the intranet" logic.
- The new skill: Model-Stable Writing. How to structure content so that when Copilots and AI search tools summarize your strategy, the right meaning survives.
- Personalization vs. culture: How to use AI to tailor the employee journey without losing the "shared story" that binds the shop floor to the top floor.
- The new mandate: Elevating your role from a distributor of messages to a steward of meaning who ensures no employee is left behind in the automated workplace.
Most pros already use AI at work, yet just 31% say their employers have prepared them to use it responsibly—and 95% of AI pilots fail due to a “learning gap” (MIT). Alexis Sevigny—a Center for AI Strategy advisor and chief AI examiner for the Canadian Public Relations Society—has audited hundreds of APR candidates, coached Parliament staff and guided global brands through the same skills gap. Here, he distills those lessons into an upskilling plan you can adopt and adapt. You’ll learn:
- Skills Gap Snapshot: Fresh insights from exams and classroom labs that shows where comms pros lag on AI.
- Program Blueprint: Building blocks of a comms AI academy—including tracks, micro-learning and prompt labs.
- Culture of Learning: Incentives that keep curiosity high—from peer demos to “AI badges.”
- Curriculum Mix: How to balance tech chops with human strengths like storytelling and critical judgment.
- Impact Metrics: How to link training to faster content, stronger engagement and career growth.
AI doesn’t have to be intimidating—or expensive—to transform how communications teams work. This session explores how a lean team leveraged accessible AI tools to deliver measurable impact—saving more than $5 million in external spend—while preserving creativity and trust. Learn how to turn skepticism into enthusiasm, identify high-value use cases, and build a culture where AI is a partner, not a threat. You’ll leave with practical strategies and real-world examples that prove innovation is possible on any budget. You’ll learn:
- Building Trust: How to overcome resistance and position AI as an enabler for your team.
- Smart Use Cases: How to pinpoint the workflows where AI delivers the greatest value.
- Culture First: Steps to maintain morale and reputation while introducing automation.
- Practical Integration: How to roll out tools and processes without heavy IT or big budgets.
- Proving Impact: Metrics and storytelling techniques to demonstrate ROI—including cost savings and productivity gains—to secure leadership buy-in.
Mass-market AI rollouts are no longer theory. Disney has built a 100-person Office of Technology Enablement for its parks and films. GE HealthCare leads the FDA in cleared AI devices. Microsoft’s Copilot now reaches hundreds of millions of users. And CNN’s CEO is betting AI will out-Google Google for news discovery. In this keynote, one of these trailblazers pulls back the curtain—sharing the use cases, decisions, guardrails and metrics behind real wins so you can borrow what works and avoid what doesn’t. You’ll hear:
- Scale and Scope: How they picked use cases, built cross-functional teams and hit deadlines on enterprise AI rollouts.
- Change and Trust: Messaging, training and governance tactics that calmed legal, earned employees trust and protected credibility—deepfake threats included.
- Critical KPIs: The KPIs execs actually care about—like time saved, subscriber growth or even FDA clearance—and how to track them in your own dashboards.
Wrap up the day with drinks, bites and easygoing networking.
Move beyond traditional memos and emails. In this session, you'll discover how to harness the power of AI video tools to create dynamic, accessible and highly engaging content. From leadership announcements to training modules, we’ll explore how AI can help you captivate your team, improve knowledge retention and build a stronger, more connected company culture. You'll learn how to:
- Create compelling video content to boost engagement and ensure your message reaches every employee.
- Use AI features, like automated captions and translations, to enhance communication accessibility for a diverse workforce.
- Incorporate interactive, bite-sized videos to transform complex information into easy-to-digest formats for better learning.
- Improve knowledge retention across your organization with more engaging and accessible video content.
Many orgs are still debating what AI is or experimenting without a clear plan. This session moves past theory to share a real-world case study of how AI was adopted inside a comms function and how that approach earned sustained confidence from senior leadership. This practitioner-led session explores how AI moved from early experimentation to everyday use, how early wins demonstrated value and reduced risk—and how AI was woven into existing structures rather than treated as “one more initiative.” Attendees will discover what actually makes the C-suite say yes and how comms leaders can use AI to deliver better insight, efficiency and judgment without sacrificing trust. You’ll learn:
- Enterprise On-Ramps: How to introduce AI in your organization beyond comms by aligning early use cases with enterprise priorities and existing leadership initiatives.
- Quick Wins: Smarter ways to prove value quickly through practical, low-risk use cases that build momentum and executive confidence.
- Workflow Fits: How to integrate AI into existing workflows, learning programs and leadership forums—without adding friction or “one more initiative.”
- Executive Guardrails: How to address executive concerns around risk, credibility and control before they slow adoption.
- C-Suite Advisor: How to position comms as an indispensable advisor by using AI to deliver stronger research, insight, efficiency and judgment.
As AI reshapes how organizations operate, new leadership roles are emerging dedicated to AI comms—roles that can translate complexity, build trust, align departments, help shape the narrative around AI and sometimes even inform AI strategy. In this panel, you’ll hear from comms leaders who’ve stepped into these roles or partnered closely with those who have—whether they’re supporting a CAIO, shaping employee comms around GenAI or helping to set or enforce policy and guardrails. You’ll learn:
- What AI Comms Leaders Do: An overview of emerging responsibilities for comms leaders—from message ownership around internal AI adoption to prompt oversight and even cross-functional integration.
- The Experience that Preps You: The backgrounds and skills that helped panelists succeed in their evolving roles where AI and comms meet.
- Org Chart Alignment: Practical comms tips for partnering with IT, legal, HR and compliance teams to help launch and lead AI messaging and adoption.
- Trust and Guardrails: How others are ensuring transparency, prompt libraries and human-in-the-loop safeguards—and how you can do the same.
- Next Steps: Action items to embrace now so you can grow into evolving AI comms functions—or advise those who already hold those roles.
Klarna cloned its CEO to deliver earnings highlights. Zoom’s Eric Yuan and NVIDIA’s Jensen Huang followed suit—proof that avatars are moving from sci-fi to everyday comms. See how one Fortune 100 team turned 90 seconds of footage into multilingual avatars for multiple leaders, then deployed them for onboarding, demos, townhalls and more. Join to discover how to do the same. You’ll learn:
- Origin to Scale: How short clips of leaders became a library of avatars delivering content in 50 languages.
- Trust Markers: Watermarks, disclosures and cues that keep audiences confident and regulators calm.
- Brand Safety: How to implement filters, biometric safeguards and approvals that don’t stall rollout.
- Launch and Impact: The channels, KPIs and cost-savings that sold execs on avatars for EX, IR and even customer support.
- DIY Quick Start: A checklist to help you pilot your own avatar next week—including tools, consent docs, rollout timeline, and more.
The next wave of AI promises self-running agents, photoreal avatars and even “world twins.” But which of these matter—and which are vaporware? In this closing panel, you’ll hear straight talk from AI insiders and brand innovators who’ve shepherded their orgs’ AI adoption—cutting through trend hype to separate speculation from solid wins and map out what actually matters next. Panelists will share how they’ve piloted agentic workflows, experimented with multilingual spokes-avatars and aligned AI efforts with real business goals. They’ll cover:
- ROI and Trends Reality Check: The truth about which AI tools already save time and money—and which trends are shiny but not enterprise ready yet (plus tips to trend spot AI shifts).
- Wins, Misses & Third Rails: Hard-won lessons from the front lines—including what delivered value, what failed fast and what introduced risk.
- Agentic Reality vs. Hype: What you need to know now about agentic AI and emerging “agentic commerce”—where it’s reshaping workflows and where readiness still lags.
- From Content to Commercial Impact: Why success isn’t about pumping out more AI content—and how teams create distinctive research, owned keywords and partnerships that AI systems and buyers actually trust.
- 90-Day Roadmap: A phased action plan (pilot → policy → scale) distilled from panelist wins so you leave with actionable next steps, not just “big ideas.”
The average company runs 67 AI tools—90% of them unapproved (Axios). Those “shadow” apps can leak data, break compliance and torpedo trust. Guided by a Center for AI Strategy advisor, this closing huddle surfaces the stealth tools your peers have caught and the playbooks they use to either rein them in—or embrace them. What we’ll do (and how we’ll fit it in):
- Flash Inventory: A quick poll of the wildest unsanctioned tools attendees have found.
- Risk-vs-Reward: A table-by-table exercise to rank tools’ upsides and risks, followed by a vote on the top three.
- Next Steps: Leave with a one-pager to start reining in shadow AI without stifling innovation.
Three in four knowledge workers now use AI, yet only 39% have had formal training (Microsoft Work Trend Index). No wonder teams are desperate for prompt templates they can trust. In this round-robin panel, senior comms and marketing leaders share their favorite prompts on screen, the ones that failed and the tweaks that made the difference. What you’ll learn:
- Winning Prompts Onscreen: Prompts that beat KPI targets and the wording tweaks for those that didn’t.
- Templates and Frameworks: How other comms and marketing teams build prompt sheets that map persona, task and tone into reusable scripts.
- Internal Magic: Prompting tips for clearer, more engaging comms content—from CEO messages to employee newsletters.
- External Reach: Prompting tips for everything from LinkedIn posts and media pitches to earnings recaps that drive engagement and real results.
- Crisis and Metrics: Tips for writing prompts in high-stakes crisis moments—and for building dashboards that prove AI’s impact.
✓ Bonus: You’ll also leave with a cheat sheet of an additional “Marcom Top 20” prompts you can use instantly.
In today’s AI‑accelerated workplace, leaders need communication that keeps pace with their organization. This session explores how Microsoft uses AI to elevate leadership communications by enabling engaging two‑way engagement, strengthening alignment through community, agents and streamlining AI-powered workflows that bring messages to life. Using tools from Microsoft, learn a new perspective on delivering leadership communications.
- Lead with trust: Embed leader voices and external storytelling into internal strategy.
- Two-way dialogue: Enable faster, clearer two‑way conversations between leaders and employees with Viva Engage.
- AI‑powered analytics: Use insights to gain trust with execs and stakeholders, including reach, sentiment and trending themes.
- Community intelligence: Use Microsoft 365 Copilot and agents to surface shared knowledge.
- Moderation at scale: Apply AI to streamline moderation and workflows.
AI has become a flashpoint—not just in courtrooms, but also in creative teams. Even as corporate teams adopt it, many designers, writers and content pros push back—citing ethics, “craft erosion” and job fears. This candid panel brings together comms leaders, AI advocates and skeptical creatives to debate the practical, moral and strategic implications of AI in creative work. You’ll hear:
- Ethical Procurement: What the future of opt-in data looks like, and how to align AI tools with transparency guidelines.
- Making the Business Case: How to show AI ROI without alienating creatives who bring brand voice to life—and how to show them where AI can help with the mundane.
- Bridging Cultures: Steps to include creatives in AI strategy, pilots and training—plus how to convey that upskilling can boost their income and careers.
- Who Owns the Work? A frank look at authorship, IP and attribution protocols to protect creatives.
- The Middle Ground: Models for co-creation and opt-outs—plus how to build a company culture that allows dissent without disengagement.
Most orgs use AI to generate more content. Few use it to enforce clarity, consistency and voice at scale—or to transform communications strategy into operational systems. At the St. Lucie County Tax Collector’s Office, leadership took a different approach. Through executive-led experimentation and close collaboration with comms, the organization built practical, policy-aligned AI tools that actually work and that employees actually use. This session explores how a government entity designed and launched custom GPTS—including the TCSLC Communications Assistant and the TCSLC Update Pro—that embed Smart Brevity, writing standards, brand style guidelines and tone directly into everyday workflows. It is a real-world case study in how comms teams can act as system builders, even inside a highly regulated public-sector environment. What you’ll learn:
- Executive AI entrepreneurship: How a forward-leaning Tax Collector created the conditions for responsible AI experimentation, and why leadership posture mattered as much as the technology.
- Comms as system builders: How comms translated leadership intent, policy and tone into usable AI systems instead of one-off content tools.
- The TCSLC Communications Assistant and the TCSLC Update Pro: How two custom GPTs were designed to standardize voice, writing quality and official messaging - without increasing review bottlenecks.
- Built-in Smart Brevity: How clarity, structure and audience-first writing principles were embedded directly into prompts and outputs, so quality scales automatically.
- From internal tools to public-facing impact: How the same comms-led AI approach informed both employee-facing GPTs and a citizen-facing AI website designed to help customers get answers faster and easier.
AI isn’t a “we'll get to it someday” topic anymore. Teams are already using it to draft messages, automate repetitive work, and get a little time back. That’s true for internal comms, as well as HR, finance, healthcare and other regulated industries where trust and privacy really matter. Workshop's 2026 Internal Comms Trends report found 42% of communicators use AI daily, and 68% say automation is their top priority for 2026 — not to replace the human side of comms, but to get some breathing room back.
In this practical session, Devin Owens will share what’s actually working, what’s worth skipping and how to use AI without losing your voice or culture. You’ll leave with:
- A clearer picture of why the AI conversation has moved from “Should we even touch this?” to “Okay… how do we use this responsibly?”
- Real examples of how teams are using AI and automation without sounding robotic or losing trust.
- Ways to design employee journeys and recurring comms that line up with how work actually happens.
Video is now a must—even in highly regulated, B2B, or less flashy industries. And thanks to a new wave of GenAI video tools, communicators can now create, clip and repurpose video faster, cheaper and with less tech know-how. Join to learn how one compliance-heavy brand modernized its content workflow using AI video without breaking rules. You’ll hear:
- Editing at Speed: Tools that auto-generate reels, subtitles and split clips from long-form content.
- Compliance to Clips: How a regulated brand quickly turned exec townhalls into short-form video.
- Voice and Avatar Tools: When to use AI for explainers—and when human-first still matters.
- Team Roles: How creative, marketing and comms can align to keep brand voice intact with AI video.
Social teams face nonstop pressure to crank out more content faster—without losing authenticity. YouTube Shorts alone now sees 200B daily views—and TikTok and YouTube are rolling out native AI creation. Meanwhile, virtual influencers like Miquela are landing big-brand deals and crowding the feed even further. This session gives you tools and tactics to help you keep it real while meeting demand—and when to partner with AI creators responsibly. You’ll learn:
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Goals and KPIs: Practical AI tools and benchmarks to quickly translate business objectives into channel-specific KPIs, so social content is tied directly to revenue, reputation and retention.
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AI Content, Real Brand Voice: Best practices to maintain authenticity and transparency while using AI for copy and visuals, including how to choose and test tools like Adobe Firefly, Nano Banana and Sora—plus how to use AI listening plus link tracking to test content and report results in real time.
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AI slop and Transparency: How to avoid “AI slop,” set clear authenticity standards for AI‑generated content and understand emerging transparency frameworks such as the C2PA standard.
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Channel Plans with AI assist: How AI copilots and custom GPTs can help define the role of TikTok, Instagram, YouTube and LinkedIn in your mix and support always—on monitoring and measurement.
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What’s Next in AI Social Co-Creation: A look at AI‑native creators and campaigns—from virtual influencers like PacSun’s Miquela to AI-forward ads like Equinox, emerging social platforms like Sora and how rising “luddite” sentiment is driving non-AI content (Porsche and Hermes).
Nearly 60% of brands still lack a documented content strategy (CMI), yet teams are flooding channels with AI-generated copy that often misses the mark. In this session, you’ll blend GenAI with proven editorial discipline—spotting content gaps, mapping content pillars, generating first drafts in minutes and polishing them with data-driven checks—so every piece or post hits harder and ties back to business goals. You’ll learn:
- Gap Audits: How to use prompts to mine search, social and competitor feeds, then cluster insights into content pillars.
- Persona Mapper: How to generate audience snapshots (goals, pain points, tone, etc.) and link them to each content pillar for maximum relevance.
- Editorial Calendars: How AI can build calendars with headlines, formats and timeliness baked in.
- Style Guides: How to feed your brand guide into ChatGPT and apply structured prompts for posts, scripts and more.
- Quality Checks: Tips to automate readability, brand voice and engagement scoring.
Over half of global companies have already faced an AI-related incident that dinged revenue or reputation (MIT Sloan). Laws move slowly, but headlines and lawsuits move fast. This panel unites crisis communicators, privacy counsel and brand leads who’ve dealt with bias, deepfakes, copyright claims and hallucinations. They’ll share what blew up, how they contained it and the safeguards they now use to protect their brands and teams. You’ll learn:
- The “Big 5” Threats: How to spot top risks to your brand (bias, privacy, deepfakes, IP and hallucinations) before they trend.
- CYAI Framework: A simple incident-response model that syncs legal, IT and comms in the first hours of any AI crisis.
- Red Team Runs: How others pressure-test plans with simulations that surface gaps and clarify roles across teams.
- Transparency Tools: Sample disclosures, watermarks and audit logs that reassure regulators and reporters alike.
- Proof You’re Protected: The KPIs—from containment time to sentiment rebound—that convince boards the AI spend was worth it.
What if you could pressure-test a campaign before it launches—not just with past data, but by simulating how key audiences and platforms are likely to respond? One global brand did exactly that using AI-powered synthetic focus groups to preview reactions, surface red flags and refine messaging before spending a media dollar. But that was just the entry point. Today, the same approach is evolving into predictive modeling and audience simulation that help marketing and comms teams anticipate what will land, what will miss and how AI systems may interpret your brand. Join to learn about:
- Synthetic Focus Groups 101: How teams model personas, simulate reactions and score copy, visuals and timing—using AI panels as a faster, lower-risk alternative to traditional focus groups.
- Predictive Campaign Testing: How synthetic audiences are used to A/B test subject lines, CTAs and creative concepts—then plug top performers directly into paid, owned and internal channels.
- Audience Simulation & Forecasting: How teams move beyond testing to simulate audience behavior, forecast sentiment shifts and model “what-if” scenarios before launches, announcements or crises.
- AI Perception & Answer Engines: How predictive modeling helps anticipate how LLMs, search and answer engines interpret your brand—and the steps teams take to influence which messages, facts and narratives AI surfaces.
- Starter Framework: A practical checklist to pilot synthetic focus groups and expand into predictive modeling—whether you’re in marketing, PR or internal comms.
INTRODUCING THE AI ACCELERATOR BADGE
As an attendee of Ragan’s AI Horizons you’ll receive this powerful credential that validates your commitment to mastering AI in communications and staying at the forefront of industry innovation.
This badge is more than recognition. It’s a signal to your organization, your clients, and your network that you are actively investing in the skills and strategies that are redefining modern communications.
WHAT THE AI ACCELERATOR BADGE REPRESENTS
- Proficiency in emerging AI tools and workflows
- A commitment to ethical, strategic, and innovative AI use
- Mastery of real-world applications shared by industry-leading speakers
- Readiness to accelerate your organization’s AI transformation
HOW TO USE THIS CREDENTIAL
You’ll walk away with a credential you can proudly display across your LinkedIn profile, email signature, digital portfolio, résumé, or internal performance documentation. It shows you’re not just keeping up, you’re leading the way.
HOW TO EARN THE BADGE
Simply attend AI Horizons Conference. All participants receive the AI Accelerator Badge upon completion, along with access to conference presentations and the post-event Executive Summary.
SPEAKERS
INTERESTED IN SPEAKING?
Please reach out to Director of Event Programming
Alyssa Smith.
WHAT YOU'LL LEARN
- Benchmarks and roadmaps: Pinpoint your org’s AI gaps, then leave with a tailored action plan.
- Agentic playbooks: Connect AI copilots and agents into an end-to-end marketing or comms engine that drafts, distributes and measures for you.
- ROI dashboards: Plug campaign, revenue and risk metrics into a single view the C-suite actually uses and trusts.
- Policy intelligence: Decode the latest U.S. “AI Action Plan,” EU Act and state laws—so you stay compliant, creative and competitive.
- Upskilled teams: Leave with cheat sheets, prompts and even DIY tech-stack maps you can deploy Monday morning after the conference.
- New personal connections: Built into the conference are an abundance of networking and idea-sharing opportunities with fellow attendees and speakers.
PRICING
Join us for the AI Horizons Conference:
| EARLY BIRD | VIP | REGULAR RATE | |||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Conference All-Access Pass(includes the pre-conference workshops and conference recording) | |||||
| Standard | $3,695 | $3,795 | $3,895 | ||
| Nonprofit/Gov/Edu | $3,595 | $3,695 | $3,795 | ||
| Ragan Insider | $3,545 | $3,645 | $3,745 | ||
| Conference Registration - Individual | |||||
| Standard | $3,295 | $3,395 | $3,495 | ||
| Nonprofit/Gov/Edu | $3,195 | $3,295 | $3,395 | ||
| Ragan Insider | $3,145 | $3,245 | $3,345 | ||
| Conference Recording On Demand(sent 10-14 days after event ends) | |||||
| Includes pre-conference workshops and conference sessions | $1999 | $1999 | $1999 | ||
Bring your team! Discounted group pricing for 3 or more is available. Contact customer service for more information.
Download this letter to convince your boss you should attend the AI Horizons Conference.
Group Discounts
Would you and your team like to attend? Group pricing for 3 or more is available when going through the registration process! Contact Customer Service for more information.
CENTER FOR AI STRATEGY MEMBER DISCOUNTS
Membership includes free registration passes. Contact Shallon Blackburn for more information on becoming a member.
RAGAN COUNCIL MEMBER DISCOUNTS
Membership includes free registration passes. Contact Shallon Blackburn for more information on becoming a member.
RAGAN INSIDER DISCOUNTS
Insiders save on all Ragan events. Not a Ragan Insider? You can become one during registration for this event!
SPONSORS & PARTNERS
Titanium
Premium
Want to become a sponsor? Get in touch with our team to discuss sponsorship opportunities.
MARRIOTT® FORT LAUDERDALE HARBOR BEACH RESORT & SPA
3030 Holiday Drive
Fort Lauderdale, Florida, USA, 33316
Toll Free: +1-800-222-6543
Visitor Info
RECHARGE, RELAX & HAVE FUN
Relax on 23 miles of Fort Lauderdale Beach with swimming, water sports, or a stroll along the promenade.
Explore Las Olas Boulevard’s art galleries, boutiques, cafés, and outdoor dining.
Cruise the Intracoastal and New River by boat tour, water taxi, gondola, or sightseeing cruise past Millionaires Row.
Tour the Bonnet House Museum & Gardens for lush scenery and fascinating history.
Enjoy hands-on exhibits at the Museum of Discovery and Science.
Stroll Riverwalk Arts & Entertainment District with museums, theaters, and river views.
Visit the Stranahan House Museum, Fort Lauderdale’s oldest building.
Discover Flamingo Gardens’ botanical gardens and wildlife sanctuary.
Shop for designer deals at Sawgrass Mills, one of America’s largest outlet malls.
EXTEND YOUR STAY IN MIAMI AND EXPLORE ALL THAT THIS VIBRANT CITY HAS TO OFFER:
There are so many exciting things to do in Greater Miami and Miami Beach! The area boasts an array of outdoor adventures including Biscayne National Park (part of the Florida reef), Everglades National Park, Big Cypress National Preserve, and the Fairchild Tropical Garden. Experience the arts and culture scene with the many museums including the Perez Art Museum Miami and the Phillip and Patricia Frost Museum of Science just to name a few. From beaches and forests to a vibrant urban scene, you’ll want to extend your conference stay in the city and enjoy all that Miami has to offer.
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- Dux ad Aedificandum Melius Negotium Casus Pro Internus Communications Software
- Instrumenta ad Augendam Employee Experientiam
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- Praesentationis Artificia pro Mundo Hybrid
WHO SHOULD ATTEND
This conference experience is ideal for business leaders and professionals involved in:
- AI
- Corporate Communications
- Employee Engagement & Culture
- Content Strategy & Creation
- Public Affairs
- Crisis Communications
- Public Relations
- Reputation Management
- Business Leadership
- Brand Management
- Executive Communications
- Issues Management
- Marketing
- Media Relations
- Social Media
- Brand Storytelling
- Corporate Affairs
- Legal
Including:
- Communications Professionals
- Marketers
- HR Leaders
- C-suite executives such as CCOs, CIOs, CFOs and Chief AI Officers (CAIOs)
- Consultants in Digital Transformation and AI
- Data Scientists and Analysts
- Department Heads and Divisional Managers
- Entrepreneurs and Startup Founders
- Innovation and R&D Managers
- Media Professionals
- Policy Makers and Government Officials Involved in AI Regulation
- Investors and Venture Capitalists Focused on AI Innovations
WHO ATTENDS
Communications professionals from these organizations have attended the AI Horizons Conference:
WONDERING IF YOU SHOULD ATTEND?
Here’s what past attendees are saying about Ragan and PR Daily Events!
This is THE place to learn from the best in the industry. The networking amongst the participants is extremely valuable, always sharing best practices.
AI is a scary world, but Ragan broke down how to face the Stephen King-like fears of horror by embracing it with safeguards and rails.
Ragan is one of the few marketing thought-leaders I highly recommend.
A great introduction for anyone looking to introduce themselves to AI tools. It really helps make you feel more comfortable integrating AI into your work and being open to all the amazing possibilities it offers. I left more excited about AI than hesitant to use it.
For communications professionals seeking tangible, actionable takeaways, Ragan events are the gold standard.
Attending a Ragan conference as a communications practitioner is like going to summer camp. You find “your people,” bond, and vow to come back again. I can’t wait until next time!
I like that Ragan provides speakers from a wide variety of fields, but their messages can be applied to all communicators. No matter what you do, you can ALWAYS walk away from a Ragan conference with solid knowledge and advice.
Just got back from the Ragan AI Horizon Conference and let me tell you—this is the event every marketing and comms professional needs to attend. I met some incredible people like the brilliant minds who are truly ahead of the curve when it comes to AI and communications. The insights, strategies, and real-world tips they shared were game-changing.
KEEP UP WITH THE LATEST!
The conference fun doesn’t start and stop at the event! Follow us on socials and sign-up for update emails.
Contact us for group rates and share with friends!
