Sydney Agency Reborn Hires European AI Expert to Close Creative Gap

Sydney-based independent agency REBORN has appointed Mike Bubenicek as Head of Creative Strategy and Innovation, a move the agency says directly targets the growing "AI capability gap" in the Australian marketing sector.

Harvard-Trained Strategist Brings Enterprise AI Credentials

Bubenicek is a Harvard-trained strategist who co-founded and led Etnetera Motion, a 40-person creative studio in Prague that produced award-winning work for Škoda, Volkswagen, Nivea, Pepsi, and MSD.

Over the past two years, he trained more than 15,000 professionals across more than 80 companies, including Red Bull and Jägermeister, making him one of Europe's most documented AI practitioners by volume of enterprise training delivered.

He also co-founded Mocup, a design marketplace that scaled to over 100,000 global customers including Facebook, Uber, and Microsoft. The platform was acquired by Smartmockups and subsequently sold to Canva in 2021.

REBORN founder David Easton described the hire as an expansion of the agency's "Future Thinkers™" philosophy. "Mike has incredible experience in marketing at every level," Easton said.

Bubenicek and REBORN had maintained a working relationship across European and Australian projects for over six years before this formal appointment. "My focus is simple: to bring a global perspective, connect it with the Australian market, and help challenger brands use AI not just to move faster, but to move differently," Bubenicek said.

Australia's AI Adoption Gap Defines the Competitive Landscape

The appointment comes as Australia's marketing sector sits at a measurable inflection point. While 91% of Australian marketing businesses already use AI, the gap between surface-level adoption and deep creative integration remains the defining competitive divide for agencies in 2025 and 2026.

Data shows 84% of high-performing marketing organizations use AI for creative development, while only 52% apply it to strategy. That 32-percentage-point gap represents the precise intersection REBORN is targeting with this hire.

High-performing organizations that embed AI in their operations are 1.3 times more likely to exceed profitability targets. That figure gives business leaders a direct financial reason to close the capability gap rather than treat AI as a background technology trend.

Australia's generative AI market is projected to grow from A$2.5 billion in 2025 to A$16.5 billion by 2031. With 68% of Australian businesses having already moved AI from pilot to full production, the experimentation phase is over.

REBORN's 18-Year Independent History Provides Strategic Context

REBORN was founded in 2008 and operates as a proudly independent agency, now in its 18th year. The agency is built on a challenger brand philosophy, creating creative, media strategy, and digital marketing for ambitious brands.

The appointment signals that independent agencies, not just large holding-company networks, are making structured investments in AI creative capability. Bubenicek's mandate focuses on helping challenger brands use AI to move faster and operate differently in a market where 97% of marketing businesses are already using or planning to adopt the technology.

"AI is changing the game, not by replacing creativity, but by removing the friction around it," Bubenicek said. "What's left is what always mattered: taste, instinct, and bold ideas."

The new role formalizes a capability at the intersection of brand strategy, AI, and creative production. Bubenicek also hosts the Mike:ON podcast, covering brand-building and emerging marketing trends.