IAA Malaysia gathered members of the marketing, media, and communications community at the BAC Performing Arts Centre (BACPAC) in Petaling Jaya on 5 June 2026 for its “Learnings from Spikes Asia 2026” session — a knowledge-sharing event designed to bring key takeaways from this year’s Spikes Asia festival back to the local industry. 

Kicking off the presentations was Jeremy Kuan, Strategy Director at Dentsu Malaysia, who brought a strategic planner’s take on Spikes Asia. His session explored what the festival means for the strategy function, and how planners are being asked to expand their frame of reference — moving from studying consumers to studying culture, and from building campaigns to building experiences worth returning to. 

Melanie Speet, Director of Spikes Asia, followed with an overview of this year’s festival and the themes visible across the awarded work. Spikes Asia 2026 placed a clear emphasis on results-driven creativity, introducing the Creative B2B Spike as a new category and evolving Social & Influencer into “Social & Creator” — reflecting how creator-led marketing has matured into a discipline of its own. Speet noted that the most recognised work moved beyond traditional advertising formats, behaving instead like entertainment, community, and culture. 

Christopher Greenough, General Manager and Regional Head of Creative Services at GrowthOps Asia, shared his reading of the trends emerging from the Spikes Asia 2026 results. He identified four shifts worth watching: a growing demand for proof over purpose in creative work; brands taking more direct control of their creative output; AI’s tendency to drive scale while simultaneously driving sameness; and a broader shift from campaigns toward creative systems designed for longevity. McDonald’s, named Advertiser of the Year with 102 Spikes Awards across APAC, was held up as a clear example of what becomes possible when global brands give local markets genuine creative freedom.  

The final speaker session brought the morning closer to home. Karla Domingo, Nur Surya Abu, and Emir Shafri from Leo Malaysia shared their insights behind “The Sponsored Truth” — their Samsung campaign that took home the Media Grand Prix at Spikes Asia 2026. Their session offered an honest look at what it takes to produce work that competes and wins at that level — a timely reminder that world-class creative output is very much within reach from Kuala Lumpur. 

The session also marked a new chapter for IACT College and Momentro, who formalised their collaboration through a Memorandum of Agreement signing. The partnership aims to bring AI literacy and practical tools closer to communications students, giving them meaningful exposure to how the industry is evolving before they enter it. 

Dr. Milan Agnihotri, Vice President of IAA Malaysia, closed the session with a summary of the key threads from the morning. Tokens of appreciation were presented to all speakers, and the event concluded with a group photograph. 

The IAA Malaysia “Learnings from Spikes Asia 2026” session was held on 5 June 2026 at BACPAC, VSQ @ PJ City Centre. The event was sponsored by Momentro and Enfection AIGENCY, with support from IACT College.