The theme of this year’s MAD//Fest, ‘The Human Touch’ struck a nerve. It felt like something people had been waiting to say out loud and the Disruption Stage was the place to do it, writes stage host, Tom Rainsford.

I’ve spoken at MAD//Fest for the last six years and hosted the Disruption Stage this year. Over that time I’ve seen the event grow. Who talks, what they talk about, how they do it. This year felt different, as the connection with the theme ran throughout.

Without getting too grand, the ‘Human Touch’ opened a door for a natural, maybe even subconscious, reaction against the wave, the noise, the chatter (both good and bad) about AI. A reclaiming of the feeling and conversation that humans, you, me, all of us, provide worth and value.

And with that came a pushback against another wave. The over-analysis and hyper-fetish with metrics over meaning.

Data tells you what people do. It cannot tell you why a new mum craves a Burger King Whopper at 2am.

It’s too easy for brands to become forgotten. Lost in the internal theatrics of perfect testing scores while categories fill with samey ads, samey creative, samey media choices. Beer and car ads came up again and again by many as examples.

Visibility is easy. Being wanted is hard. The brands winning aren’t the ones optimised for systems and internal benchmarks. They’re the ones that make people feel something and become famous for it. And that’s not me just saying it. Every day this was talked about, evidenced and proofed with the self-created demi-god of quantitative data points and its Cerberus AI.

But this wasn’t a human vs. AI royal rumble. Nor a brand vs. performance shoot-out.

It was just people saying that being a person is good. Adds value. Is creative. Can be fun. That we can use tools. Measure things. But we, as humans, with experience, with the guts to make decisions, can maybe, just maybe, build beautiful and successful businesses and brands.

And maybe we shouldn’t over-analyse that.

Each presenter and interviewer deserves recognition for getting up on stage and talking in front of a large group of people. I saw nerves, jitters dressed up as confidence, and Jude Bellingham-like confidence. And I bloody love each of those feelings, as it shows how wonderfully different yet the same we all are.

Whether you talk to a close-knit group or pack the house out, the worry and legwork is always the same. Delightful and knackering in equal measure.

I used to work for a business that would constantly say that senior meetings shouldn’t be ‘show and tell’ and then every senior meeting was a kangaroo court. The Disruption Stage was almost never this. Yes, a few key PR messages were landed. But the moments that connected beyond rational nodding were the honest ones. Even confessional.

And what’s more honest than sharing about getting arrested for your marketing, as Rory at GymNation shared.

Nearly ten years ago at the Arts Marketing Association National Conference (and if not too arrogant of me…meh…a talk that also trended on Twitter, when that was a thing), I spoke about the Power of Play. Seems the strategy of play for brands has gone MIA in recent years. Maybe it’s being held captive in the same dungeon as ‘brand ads’ and recent escapee ‘funny ads’.

Whatever the reason, playfulness, (way beyond down-to-earth playful tone of voice), seemed to be back at the heart of brands. Nowhere better executed than a presentation by the LEGO Group - a blitzkrieg of bricks, rock-paper-scissors and a Heathrow fleet of paper aeroplanes. Everyone loved it. Because it made them feel something, playful. Which was, fittingly, the whole point.

There is a natural element of humanness built into an event like this. You get to meet people and share space. Bump into old friends, colleagues, thingymajig who’s really nice but you can’t remember their name. Or in my case a CMO who hasn’t yet paid your outstanding invoice. I’ll be honest, it was awkward.

But above all of that it’s the joy of hearing passionate people, who know their stuff, say it to people who want to listen. Who engage openly and happily.

In a world where we often present at work and the people you’re speaking to look bored or aren’t looking at all but looking at a laptop, their phone or the time (we’ve all done it). Not here.

That’s what ‘The Human Touch’ actually means. Not a theme. A room full of people, being more human than ever.

Of course, all of this was  only possible due to the MAD//Fest team, front and back of house, and the production crews. All showing that humans can put on a hell of a show with passion and energy.

So here’s to MAD//FEST 2027.