HOST
North America
REGION
13
ATTENDEES
CX and Marketing
INDUSTRY
THE BRIEF
An Exploration into Agentic AI with Sitecore
NORTH AMERICA, January 13, 2026 – Sitecore, in conjunction with Altudo and Microsoft, sought to explore the realm of agentic AI and its integration into the marketing and business space, alongside fellow industry peers, Customer UX directors, and marketing professionals. Alongside The Ortus Club, the guests were able to enjoy an intimate dining experience and discuss the ever-changing marketing and Customer UX landscape.
The overarching goal of this event was to explore how organisations can develop agile, relevant, and compelling customer journeys utilising new AI technologies. Thus, freeing marketers to focus on creativity, empathy, and brand resonance.
THE SETTING
Fine Dining & Premium Wine Overlooking the Big Apple
Manhatta Restaurant
28 Liberty St, 60th floor, New York, NY 10005, United States
The Manhatta Restaurant is a celebrated event space boasting a vibrant bar and lounge with a view of the Big Apple’s skyline. From private dinners to weddings, The Manhatta has hosted a wide range of events. Offering multi-course meals, lunch menus, and an award-winning wine list, they have something special for everyone. Our guests enjoyed a premium mixology-led experience featuring crafted cocktails with layered flavours, premium spirits, clarified infusions, and modern techniques. The tasting followed a standard seated format, with drinks presented by a mixologist and served directly to guests.
Interested to find out how the event was shaped and the work that went behind it?
THE GUESTLIST
US Senior Marketing & CX Leaders
- Senior Director of Marketing, Verizon
- Senior Director of Data and Insights Products, Verizon
- Director of Digital Marketing, New York-Presbyterian
- VP of Service Line & Digital Marketing, New York-Presbyterian
- Senior Marketing Manager, New York-Presbyterian
- Director of Global Portfolio Marketing, Experian
- Managing Director, HSBC
- VP of Analytics & Digital Marketing
- Senior Director of Media Channel Planning & Marketing Transformation, Gap
- Senior Director of Supply Chain Operations, MSKCC
- Head of Social, Sirius XM
- Director of Digital Marketing & Product Owner, Prudential Insurance
- Enterprise Sales Manager, Sitecore
- Regional VP of Enterprise East New Business, Sitecore
- Senior Account Executive, Sitecore
Sitecore was seeking a specific demographic of attendees working in the fields of marketing, digital experience, and customer experience, specifically those at the director level and above. The attendees were all C-level executives, VPs, and equivalent senior director roles within those respective fields, while showcasing a diverse range of industries from banking to cosmetics and fashion.
Each of these attendees brought their own specific challenges and particular topics to discuss at the roundtable, including AI integration, degree of trust in AI integration at the executive level, and the role of people in a world of automation. Finding ways to personalise content while utilising AI was a particularly prominent topic throughout the networking event.
THE TOPIC
Implementing AI Without Losing Creativity
The discussion centred on how marketing teams are evolving as AI becomes increasingly embedded within their strategies to enhance digital experiences. With AI taking on heavy, data-driven marketing tasks such as analysing customer behaviour, predicting intent, and delivering personalised messages promptly, the conversation shifted to the growing role of intelligent agents.
As customer expectations continue to evolve and new ways of working take shape, the conversation moved beyond technology to address what this shift towards AI means for leadership, skills, and how success will be measured.
Along the way, executive leaders reflected on the real opportunity in combining the strengths of both. AI can drive speed, scale, and data-led precision, while humans focus on creativity, empathy, and the big ideas that build lasting connections.
Key questions included:
- What are the biggest obstacles organisations face when balancing human creativity with machine-driven insights in marketing?
- How can leaders design processes and team structures to maximise the complementary strengths of people and AI in customer engagement?
- Which emerging technologies and approaches are likely to redefine the human-machine marketing mix over the next five years?
THE INSIGHTS
Lacking Trust & Volatile Regulations
Certain challenges became recurring themes throughout the event, and our attendees were particularly concerned about how limited internal creative capacities, low-quality data, unclear ownership, and over-automation were limiting their ability to scale emotionally resonant digital experiences. Most of the attendees were also cautious or limitedly trusting of agentic AI within customer-facing journeys, citing defined use cases and necessitating clear guardrails. Some attendees, however, argued that the human factor would be impossible to replace, and significant doubts remained on the use of AI in the marketing space to create emotionally moving experiences.
Another key talking point was the implementation of AI in the rapidly changing regulatory space that it now inhabits. Many organisations are hesitant to proceed with AI usage as the rules and regulations governing it are constantly changing, and legal compliance has become increasingly complex. At the same time, AI technologies are also advancing quickly, and our attendees were wondering how everyone was keeping up with new developments and best practices and implementing them in real-time.
KEY TAKEAWAYS
AI is an Enabler of Opportunities
AI should enable scale, while humans safeguard meaning and brand authenticity
The strongest digital experiences are created when AI is used to enhance speed and intelligence, with human judgment guiding emotion, context, and trust.
Clear boundaries drive successful agentic AI adoption
Organisations that succeed define where automation adds value and where human decision-making must remain central, avoiding AI adoption driven by hype rather than purpose.
The intersection of technology and psychology unlocks long-term growth
By balancing speed, empathy, and governance, organisations can build digital experiences that strengthen loyalty and deliver sustainable business impact.
THE RESULTS
13 on the 13th Discuss the Future of CX & Marketing
At the New York City event on January 13th, 13 attendees, excluding the three client representatives from Sitecore, attended. The attendees were able to connect with like-minded individuals in a cross-industry roundtable to expand their network and discuss further developments in AI implementation and its application in the consumer marketing space. Some of the attendees made arrangements to discuss potential collaborations and projects involving agentic AI in both creative spaces and other business uses.
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