What Will AI Bring in 2026?

On algorithms, identity and taste.

Are algorithms changing not only what we see digitally, but our identities? And what are brand supposed to do about it? That was the starting point of a piece [https://www.hugeinc.com/perspectives/identity-as-algorithm/] written by Huge's Senior Director of Strategy, Kima Sargsyan, published earlier this year and that we discussed at length in this episode, along with the connection digital identity has with taste—another topic that Kima has touched upon in her personal Substack, Perceptio. Kima is one of the best writers at Huge (also a competitive field). This year, we published a brilliant piece she wrote on the impact that our current algorithmic reality is having on the identities of consumers, and what brands should do about it — a piece we discussed at length in this conversation. But Kima also writes a Substack called Perceptio, with very thoughtful pieces, including one on taste and curation in the digital era that really caught my attention, and that we also weaved into the conversation.

CoinTracker x Huge: A Campaign for a Groundbreaking Year

Tax Day is around the corner, and for those who invest in digital assets (or, as most people would say, “crypto”) it’s a special one. That’s because the 2025 tax year (reported this April) is the first time in which brokers of digital assets are required to report proceeds from the sale, exchange, or disposal of digital assets. And for those who trade in crypto that means a potential new source of stress. That’s why CoinTracker, a leading crypto tax software and portfolio tracking platform, decided to launch a campaign educating and giving reassurance about filing this year. The partner they chose for creating this work (as you probably can imagine at this point) was Huge, and the result, a campaign fully created with AI that features Tommy Coyne, a fictional character with guru vibes. To understand what went behind creating the campaign, the partnership between Huge and CoinTracker, and the possibilities of AI-powered storytelling, we talked to Ez Blaine, Chief Creative Officer at Huge, and Thom Sweeney, Head of Growth at CoinTracker.

Discoverability in the Age of Intention

A conversation with Luis Caballero, Senior VP of Data at Huge, on what it means for brands to be discoverable in the Age of Intention, the future of data and search, and the proprietary tools his team has built. Further reading: "Discoverability in the Age of Intention [https://www.hugeinc.com/perspectives/discoverability-in-the-age-of-intention/]" by Luis Caballero.

Intelligent Fan Experiences: The New Frontier for Sports

Last year, we published a white paper called "IFX," [https://www.hugeinc.com/ifx/] based on two ideas: First, that we live in a world of content saturation, with more options for entertainment than ever before — a scenario in which live sports remained one of the last bastions of unscripted drama.  Second, that with new technologies and more options to follow athletes and teams — the rules for fandom are changing.  It’s not just that the way in which people become fans of a team or athlete may be evolving in a digitally-dominated world, but also that fans expect personalized digital experiences that feel intimate, relevant and worth their attention. In other words: Intelligent Fan Experiences. This is the concept that ties the three conversations we had for this episode: with Chris Bunker, the author of the paper; with Emily Wengert, our AI leader, on the OLI project for NBCU; and Kieron Leppard, who led the charge in redesigning the website for The Ring, the publication rightly called "The Bible of Boxing."

What Will AI Bring in 2026?

Will Google dethrone OpenAI? Will GEO kill the ads? What will AI shopping mean for brands? We asked three young members of our AI Product Strategy Team to place their one bet for the most important thing AI would bring this year. Their predictions were published on our website [https://www.hugeinc.com/perspectives/ai-predictions-2026/], and in early February, we interviewed them in our New York City offices. Here's what Chris Bunker, Michelle Custode and Navid Ghomeshi see happening in AI in 2026.