January inevitably spawns a cottage industry of predictions. Will the holding groups withstand the next wave of AI disruption? Will in-housing become the new norm? Will influencers claim an even bigger slice of the marketing budget or finally hit saturation?
This year, those questions hit closer to home. In our year-end reportage, The 2025 Wrap, we chronicled a sector being buffeted by restructures, platform shifts and a consumer environment that has grown cautious by the month. In that context, issuing confident forecasts can seem like an outrageous or, some might call a risky exercise. Yet patterns do reveal themselves. Across research firms, agencies and platforms, seasoned strategists are reading the tea leaves, drawing on years of market experience with a new layer of AI data to sketch out where the year might head.
Rather than simply add to the noise, our editors have adopted a more deliberate approach to build a single hub with the most credible trend reports from across the region and distil them into clear, easy-to-read snapshots of what 2026 may hold.
We'll update this page all through January with fresh insights into what's hot, what's not—one that marketers need to watch closely. So bookmark this page as your rolling guide to the year ahead.
WHAT TO WATCH OUT FOR IN 2026
Labubu goes global, disrupting with the ‘Cute Economy 2.0’
Sources: TBWA’s Labubu Letters: A Disruption Brief on Ascending Global Chinese Brands
TBWA has launched "Labubu Letter," a global whitepaper analysing the rise of Chinese brands as global disruptors. The report highlights how brands such as Pop Mart, Miniso, Vivo, Honor, BYD, and GWM are challenging conventions and reshaping global brand standards through bold product innovation and cultural fluency. Key findings cover across various sectors, from new retail to smartphones and automotive industries. With the iconic fashion toy, Labubu, brands are harnessing the 'Cute Economy 2.0' by utilising imperfect, character-driven intellectual property (IP) that is co-created with communities and amplified through fashion-oriented strategies and lifestyle marketing. The whitepaper also analyzes the success of smartphone brands driven by locally relevant features and rapid content creation. Meanwhile, Chinese brands are redefining performance, luxury, and smart features, creating new value systems in the automotive industry, especially for EV. TBWA refers to itself as 'The Disruption Company' and presents this new report for 2026 with a focus on the disruptive mindset of Chinese brands, which are scaling globally by rewriting traditional business playbooks.
Fans, not brands, now call the shots on social
Source: We Are Social's Think Forward report 2026
Social media is moving away from polished content and toward an authentic, fan-driven culture as feeds get increasingly flooded with AI-generated posts, according to We Are Social's latest report.
This means effective brand-building will rely on emotional intimacy, “cringe” but real content, and deep fandom participation. It's no longer just about aesthetics or scale. The report spotlights a new 'intimacy economy' where audiences reward brands that focus on mundane rituals and emotional proximity rather than spectacle.
Social media is already many marketers’ top channel for driving emotional connection, and the report notes a growing appetite for slower, quieter formats such as micro-therapy live streams, 'scream clubs', and commuter confessionals.
The companion trend, dubbed "cringe confidence," reframes awkwardness as a creative stance and a language of care. As AI-generated content accelerates becomes mainstream, creators and audiences in markets like Japan, Korea and Southeast Asia are leaning into unfiltered sincerity, low-stakes dance routines and hyper-specific obsessions as a response to overly polished content.
When it comes to luxury, the report notes that premium brands must now prove their worth through inimitable craft, archives and surreal, post-human aesthetics rather than gatekept exclusivity. With 81% of marketers already using AI tools in the creative process and a further 17% planning to start this year, true premiumness will come from what cannot be automated, such as experimental visual worlds and imaginative distortions that feel uniquely human.
Tuning into fandoms is now table-stakes for brands. 73% of marketers say fandoms will play a key role in their social strategies, as consumers increasingly want brands to recognise and support their creative expression. From fan-led public tributes in the Philippines to niche subcultures thriving on platforms like Letterboxd, Substack, and Reddit, marketers who can meaningfully engage with these communities are more likely to cultivate brand loyalty.
The growth opportunity lies in designing campaigns for a radically human era. This means treating creators as educators, opening up the mechanics of luxury, and giving fans the narrative building blocks to turn brand worlds into their own.
Future consumption in China decoded
Source: TBWA and Omnicom Media: China Mar-Comms Trends in 2026
Creative agency TBWA and media agency Omnicom Media, both under Omnicom, have jointly released the 2026 China 10 Marketing Trends report, highlighting shifts such as search evolving into a transaction hub, retail becoming omnichannel, and consumers increasingly blending rationality with emotion, technology with humanity.
- Search Reimagined: The value of search will evolve from a traffic gateway into a hub for task execution and transaction conversion. Competition in the search industry will expand beyond "information accuracy" to encompass services that cover the entire consumer journey, from discovery and decision-making through to purchase.
- Contextual media: Centred on people, this approach delivers the right content or service to the right individuals at the right time and the right place through the appropriate media channels.
- Omnichannel Retail: The retail sector will advance toward "omnichannel retail," shifting from a "channel-centric mindset" to a "consumer-centric seamless experience mindset." This new retail model integrates online and offline, as well as public and private traffic.
- Augmented Humanity: Consumer motivation will shift from "using products" to "becoming a stronger version of oneself," actively leveraging technologies such as artificial intelligence, wearable devices, and biotechnology to enhance physical capabilities, sensory functions, health, cognitive abilities, creativity, and more.
- Rational Sensationist: The trend will be driven by a dual force: calculated "rationality" and the "impulsiveness" of passion-driven spending.
- SheSports Economy: Women are increasingly transitioning from participants in mass sports events to key definers and drivers. For them, sports have long transcended mere physical exercise, becoming a new language of fashion for self-expression, community connection, and attitude assertion.
- Mood Geisting: By 2026, successful brands will no longer vaguely discuss emotions but will instead anchor themselves in a specific, unique, and immersive emotion to build differentiation around it.
- Stability Pursuit: As "long-termism" becomes a consensus, promoting classic styles or widely accepted designs faces new challenges: when more people own the same classic item, how can individuality and personal expression be presented?
- Maturity Paradox: Consumers are increasingly crossing generational boundaries, with "generation gaps" dissolving within shared interest circles, bridging psychological, interest, and attitudinal differences. "Kidult" culture, which freely blends adult and childlike experiences, is becoming the new norm.
- Neo-Collectivism in Football: In the 2026 World Cup year, China’s football audience will no longer consist solely of viewers of top-tier events but will become more diverse, reflecting a broader cultural engagement with the sport.
Self-care, travel, and heartfelt connections move to the spotlight
Source: Mintel China’s Spring Festival Consumption Insights and Outlook in China 2026
74% respondents feel anxious about the holiday, with disrupted sleep, unhealthy eating and financial pressure the main concerns. For younger people, Lunar New Year is increasingly seen as a chance to rest and reset, rather than perform social obligations—the sentiment is now also
That sensibility is changing family rituals. Although cross-generational reunions remain mainstream, with nearly half of all people planning to return to their hometowns, younger generations are reshaping family dynamics through creative interactions. Data shows that the 18–29 age group is keen on reverse mentoring, using smart home appliances, pet gifting, and family games such as balloon stomping and blind-box red envelopes to engage elders in modern New Year customs. On social media, trends like DIY family portraits and AI-based costume changes highlight young people’s desire for co-created moments.
Travel is a major priority. Spring Festival travel is now well above 2021 levels, led by people in their thirties. Domestically, warm coastal cities and historic destinations are both in demand, while Japan, South Korea and Southeast Asia top the list for overseas trips. Hotels are already testing Lunar New Year-themed experiences to capture the trend.
Gift-giving has also become more personal. 67% of consumers now prioritise the recipient’s preferences, while health matters more than prestige. Membership-based retailers such as Sam’s Club are benefiting, with their share of gift purchases rising from 28% in 2025 to 41% in 2026, while beauty and personal care products dominate last-minute buying.
Traditional culture is being re-embraced too, with 43% of higher-income consumers interested in temple fairs and folk events. Brands like Loewe are tapping into this by blending heritage with contemporary design. “Spring Festival spending is returning to its essence,” said Gloria Gan, senior analyst at Mintel. “People want personal comfort and genuine emotional connection. Brands that balance tradition with modern expectations will be the ones that stand out.”
Snackable content isn't building long-term loyalty
Source: IMG’s Digital Trends 2026 report
Quick, short videos work well for top-of-funnel discovery for brands and as a signpost into a richer world of deep storytelling. But according to IMG’s Digital Trends 2026 report, this format alone will not build deep audience relationships, loyalty or long-term spend. The report finds that while short-form clips gain easy virality, boosted by Instagram, YouTube and even LinkedIn favouring 9:16 video over traditional formats, they lack the depth for long-lasting consumer engagement.
IMG’s report finds long-form content as a stronger driver of audience loyalty – evident in YouTube’s popularity as a destination for podcasts and, as per Nielsen, its ability to bite into television’s viewership share.
Creators on Twitch underscore this trend with record marathon streams. US streamer Kai Cenat recently surpassed one million active paid subscribers and Spain’s Ibai Llanos hit a peak of 9.3 million concurrent viewers on a single broadcast Clearly, attention spans haven’t shrunk—the audience stays when content and format are both riveting.
Over-prioritising short-form content comes with a cost: a shallower connection with fandom. While both short and long formats have their place, the Digital Trends 2026 study tells marketers to intentionally balance them—use short-form as a deliberate top-of-funnel tool to catch the casual strollers on the internet, and heavily invest in deep, must-watch experiences to turn them into committed fans.
Consumers reward brands that take bold risks and create culture
Source: Havas Red’s A New Lens on Brand Experience 2026
Familiar and templated are out. In a world of lo-fi, social-first experiences, brands dipping into formulaic Instagrammable moments will easily blend in the background. The year demands bigger creative swings and bigger (calculated) risks to grab attention in crowded social feeds.
Brand boldness isn't just about virality or volume; Havas Red’s new A New Lens on Brand Experience 2026 report argues that the work cutting through today is witty, culturally aware, and meaningfully distinctive. The white paper, led by Michael Ozard, group brand experience director at Havas Red Australia, draws on insights from experiential specialists across the network. Take Duolingo 'killing off' its mascot as an example. Blacking out the social channels, launching a fake memorial site and letting speculation and memes run rife before the big reveal that users can bring back Duo by completing lessons. The organic buzz was unbeatable. The stunt tripled engagement for the language app, drove a surge in app downloads and deepened emotional affinity among fans.
Vita Coco’s Valentine’s 'anti-gift' vending machine is another example of an equally telling form of ROI. The brand satirised glossy influencer Valentine campaigns with lo-fi coconuts and tongue-in-cheek messaging. The activation sparked social conversation to earn relevance and strengthen brand likability among audiences.
Across examples, Havas Red's report concludes that originality outperforms volume and creating moments people feel, not just see, are more likely to drive business outcomes.
Convenience has a limit, and brands are about to find out the hard way
Source: Dentsu's Human Truths in the Algorithmic Era 2026 Media Trends report
Consumers have long been promised frictionless everything, from search to shopping. The report finds there is a tipping point where convenience stops delighting and starts dulling the experience. People still want smoother journeys and fewer hassles, but they also enjoy limited drops, appointments and hard-to-get products because these moments feel more personal and considered.
Interestingly, the report notes that not all friction is a bad thing. Waiting, effort or a sense of exclusivity can make something feel more meaningful. It can create a feeling of belonging, build anticipation and increase how much people value a product. Over time, these behaviours can turn into small rituals that strengthen loyalty to a brand.
Clearly, a big challenge for marketers in 2026 will be to use friction intentionally. That means keeping the moments that add interest and desire, while removing the ones that genuinely slow people down or frustrate them.
Digital natives are redefining how and where they spend their time, money, and attention
Source: We Are Social and Meltwater’s Digital 2026 report
Over one billion people engage with Gen AI tools every month. These tools are changing how audiences search to discover brands and interact with content. AI is becoming more influential than ever, and could eclipse search engines and social feeds as the primary way to access information.
In Southeast Asia, internet adoption has peaked at 82.9%. Meanwhile, Singapore stands out with 98.9% online, with 56.5% using TikTok, and 71.6% on YouTube, figures that place the city-state above global averages on key platforms. Singapore also ranks among the top markets for ChatGPT usage, with more than a third of adults having used the tool in recent months, and a clear majority shopping online weekly and paying for some form of digital content.
Marketers must now compete for consumers' attention across both social and video platforms as new forms of branded content emerge on Gen AI. Notably, younger consumers are particularly likely to discover brands through social channels. Singapore, in particular, is an anomaly, with consumers still leaning slightly towards search engines for brand discovery.
ASEAN is skipping straight to the agentic era of work
Source: Salesforce's 2026 ASEAN Predictions
