Creative Intelligence System, the first solution from a three-year initiative, launches for financial services at Adobe Summit 2026.
NEW YORK CITY, NY / ACCESS Newswire / April 21, 2026 / Customer intelligence bookends the creative process. Research shapes the brief. Analytics explain what happened. But between those two moments – when the message, the framing, and the visuals are actually being decided – the data goes dark. To end that costly pattern, Stagwell’s (NASDAQ:STGW) Code and Theory today announced the Creative Intelligence System, the first solution from Code and Theory and Adobe’s Partner Solutions Group, a three-year co-development effort. It closes the gap between what enterprises know about their customers and what they create for them, putting that intelligence to work before creative decisions are locked, not after they’ve shipped.
Code and Theory, in collaboration with Adobe, is rolling out several industry-specific solutions that combine Adobe’s tools, including Adobe Experience Platform, Adobe GenStudio for Performance Marketing and Adobe Experience Manager, with Code and Theory’s creative and technology expertise, backed by Stagwell’s network and infrastructure. The solutions will be in industries where Code and Theory has deep roots, such as financial services, B2B, sports, and media and entertainment.
The first solution, the Creative Intelligence System with Experience Platform, is purpose-built for financial services – an industry that knows more about its customers than almost any other, yet loses access to that intelligence the moment creative development begins. It debuts at Adobe Summit this month.
Financial services organizations know more about their customers than almost any other industry. That knowledge shapes who they target and when. But the moment creative is being developed – message, framing, tone, and visuals – the data goes dark. Once the work clears compliance, there’s no going back. The creative is locked.
The Creative Intelligence System leverages data from Adobe Real-Time CDP, powered by Experience Platform, to help shape what marketers say, not just who they reach. It generates synthetic AI personas directly from Real-Time CDP segment data, letting marketing teams test messaging, positioning and creative concepts before locking decisions. Unlike panel-based pre-testing, a built-in Research Agent explains what’s working and why. Insights surface inside existing tools like GenStudio for Performance Marketing and Experience Manager, and as resonance signals correlate with real-world performance over time, every campaign makes the next one smarter.
The Creative Intelligence System is powered by Stagwell’s AI and data platform and Code and Theory’s marketing operating system, The Machine, an always-on system that connects campaign data, asset libraries, creative production and performance results across the enterprise.
“The marketing industry has spent years building the infrastructure to understand customers, but too often, that intelligence never makes it into the work itself,” said Mark Penn, Chairman and CEO of Stagwell. “The Creative Intelligence System changes that. In partnership with Adobe, we’re embedding real-time customer insight directly into the creative process, so brands can move faster, create smarter, and ensure every piece of work reflects a deeper understanding of their audience.”
Michael Treff, CEO of Code and Theory, said: “Most enterprises test creative after the fact, when it’s too late to change anything meaningful. The Creative Intelligence Solution flips that. We’re putting intelligence at the moment of creation, not after it, so every dollar works harder from the start, not retroactively.”
Code and Theory has been honored as a top agency 15 times in the past two years, having been named one of Fast Company’s Most Innovative Companies in 2026, Ad Age’s A-List and Adweek’s Most Innovative Agency of the Year.
About Stagwell
Stagwell is the global challenger network transforming marketing through AI. We deliver scaled creative performance for the world’s most ambitious brands, connecting culture-moving creativity with leading-edge technology to harmonize the art and science of marketing. Led by entrepreneurs, our specialists in 45+ countries are unified under a single purpose: to drive effectiveness and improve business results for our clients. Join us at www.stagwellglobal.com.
About The Code and Theory Network
The Code and Theory Network is the only technology and creative network built on a 50/50 balance of engineers and creatives. Part of Stagwell, it offers a global footprint and the capability to work across the entirety of the customer-facing journey – and implement the technology that powers it. The network includes Code and Theory, Kettle, Instrument, Left Field Labs, Truelogic, Create Group, Rhythm and Mediacurrent. Clients include Amazon, JPMorganChase, Microsoft, NBC, NFL, and Yeti. For more, visit codeandtheory.com.
Media Contact
Kenneth Hein
kenneth.hein@codeandtheory.com
SOURCE: Stagwell
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