Cannes Lions 2026 Day Four: Ogilvy Tops Asia as Creativity That Delivers Business Takes Centre Stage

The fourth day of Cannes Lions 2026 belonged as much to business transformation as it did to creativity. While the Festival unveiled another slate of Grand Prix winners across strategy, effectiveness, innovation and commerce, it was Ogilvy that emerged as one of the day’s biggest winners after being named Asia Regional Network of the Year, reinforcing the agency network’s growing dominance across the region.

The recognition capped a strong performance driven largely by Ogilvy Singapore’s award-winning Vaseline campaigns, which continued to collect Lions across multiple categories, demonstrating that one powerful creative platform can deliver sustained results across business, brand and culture.

The bigger story emerging from Cannes, however, is that creativity is no longer being judged purely by originality. Increasingly, it is being rewarded for solving commercial challenges, driving measurable business outcomes and creating tangible societal impact.

“The work awarded today clearly demonstrates the effectiveness and transformative power of creativity in business,” said Cannes Lions CEO Simon Cook, adding that Greece’s first-ever Grand Prix marked another milestone for the global creative industry.

Business Ideas with Commercial Impact

The Creative Business Transformation Grand Prix went to McCann Athens for The Wedding Rice, a deceptively simple idea that found a profitable new purpose for rice unsuitable for consumption.

Rather than allowing farmers to discard imperfect rice, the agency repositioned it as ceremonial rice for weddings, creating an entirely new revenue stream with minimal investment while solving a long-standing agricultural problem.

It perfectly reflected this year’s Cannes theme that transformational creativity does not necessarily require breakthrough technology. Sometimes it simply requires seeing overlooked opportunities differently.

Ogilvy Singapore’s Vaseline Verified earned both Silver and Bronze Lions in the category, continuing its remarkable run throughout the Festival.

Effectiveness Is Becoming Ultimate Creative Currency

One of the Festival’s most significant awards, the Creative Effectiveness Grand Prix, went to Publicis Conseil Paris for AXA France’s Three Words.

By inserting three simple words into home insurance contracts, AXA created a discreet escape route for victims of domestic abuse, turning an insurance policy into a life-saving intervention while strengthening both brand trust and long-term business performance.

The campaign demonstrated why effectiveness today extends beyond sales metrics. Brands are increasingly being recognised for solving meaningful human problems while delivering commercial value.

Ogilvy Singapore added another Silver and Bronze Lion for Vaseline Verified, while Dentsu Tokyo secured Bronze for My Japan Railway.

Strategy Built on Culture

The Creative Strategy Grand Prix went to LePub Milan and Publicis Dublin for Heineken’s The Pub that Refused to Die.

Rather than producing another advertising campaign, Heineken helped communities collectively purchase and preserve local pubs threatened with closure, transforming a business objective into a national movement rooted in Irish culture.

The campaign illustrated a growing Cannes trend where the strongest strategic work begins with cultural understanding rather than media planning.

Ogilvy Singapore collected another Silver Lion in the category.

Experience Still Matters

The Brand Experience & Activation category produced one of the Festival’s most talked-about winners.

Adam&Eve\TBWA London’s Expedition Impossible for Columbia Sportswear challenged flat-Earth believers by offering ownership of the company to anyone who could prove the Earth was flat.

The campaign cleverly blended humour, participation and scientific fact into a global conversation that kept the brand firmly at the centre.

Asia-Pacific agencies also enjoyed a strong showing.

McCann New Zealand won Gold and Bronze for Huggies’ Expensive Sht*, Leo Australia earned Silver for Suncorp Insurance’s Haven, while Leo Singapore, Ogilvy Singapore and Dentsu Creative Jakarta also collected Bronze Lions.

Commerce And Innovation Expand Creativity’s Role

Creative Commerce recognised VML Warsaw’s AI-powered Lucky Fan Index for Wisła Kraków Football Club, showing how data, technology and fan passion can strengthen commercial relationships.

Ogilvy Singapore added yet another Bronze Lion for Vaseline Originals.

Meanwhile, the Innovation Grand Prix went to adidas for Supernova Adaptive, a performance running shoe developed with and for runners with Down syndrome.

Rather than showcasing technology for its own sake, the project demonstrated how innovation can create genuine social inclusion through product design.

TBWA\Hakuhodo Tokyo secured a Silver Lion for Radio Time Machine.

Asia’s Growing Creative Influence

Beyond individual winners, the day’s results underscored Asia-Pacific’s growing influence on the global creative stage.

Singapore continued to establish itself as one of the region’s strongest creative hubs, with Ogilvy’s Vaseline work becoming one of the Festival’s most decorated campaigns. Australia, Japan, Indonesia and New Zealand also maintained a healthy presence across multiple categories, reflecting the breadth of creative excellence emerging from the region.

Ogilvy’s Asia Regional Network of the Year honour perhaps best encapsulates the industry’s current direction. Its success was not built around a single standout commercial or viral campaign, but around consistent work that blended creativity with effectiveness, commerce, innovation and measurable business impact.

As Cannes Lions heads into its final day, one message has become unmistakably clear. The industry’s highest honours are increasingly reserved for ideas that do more than capture attention. They solve real problems, create measurable value and leave businesses, communities and consumers better off than before.