TBWA HAKUHODO's Hosoda Named to MAD STARS 2026 Final Jury
TBWA HAKUHODO's Chief Creative Officer Takahiro Hosoda appointed to MAD STARS 2026 final jury in Busan. Japanese creative leadership shapes international advertising standards amid AI concerns.
TBWA HAKUHODO has appointed Chief Creative Officer Takahiro Hosoda to the MAD STARS 2026 Final Jury for on-site judging in Busan, South Korea, scheduled for August 26-28, 2026. Yuhei Ito, Head of Design at the agency, will participate in preliminary judging rounds for the international advertising competition.
Japanese Creative Leadership Takes Center Stage
The appointments position TBWA HAKUHODO at the forefront of international creative evaluation standards. Hosoda will join 40 on-site jurors for final rounds in Busan, part of a global jury exceeding 350 professionals across marketing, advertising, digital, media, and PR disciplines.
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Hosoda emphasized his judging criteria in his appointment announcement: "Bold, unconventional, and truly mad ideas from Asia resist AI replication." His perspective reflects growing concerns about artificial intelligence's impact on creative originality in an era of increasing automation.
The appointments follow TBWA HAKUHODO's 13th consecutive Gold win for Creative Agency of the Year at Campaign Asia-Pacific's Japan/Korea Agency of the Year 2025. The agency also secured additional Golds for Production Company of the Year and Best Culture, demonstrating sustained excellence across multiple categories.
Evaluating Breakthrough Work in Restructured Competition
MAD STARS 2026 has restructured award categories around two core groups: SOLUTION, focused on problem-solving, and POSITIVE IMPACT, centered on societal change. The shift reflects evolving standards for creative excellence beyond traditional advertising effectiveness.
Entries remain open worldwide until June 15, 2026, with finalists announced in July. The competition features three final judging rounds, including two in-person sessions in Busan alongside online evaluation.
Hosoda brings a structured creative philosophy to his jury role, outlined in seven principles: Re-Imagining, Personal Bias, Serendipity, A New Lens, Time Design, Kind AI, and Signals. This framework, detailed in The Sense by Takahiro Hosoda, provides a systematic approach to evaluating intuitive creativity.
His emphasis on "bravery over correctness" echoes TBWA's core ethos from Lee Clow: "Do the brave thing." This principle guides his evaluation of breakthrough work at international competitions.
Japanese Perspective on Global Creative Standards
TBWA HAKUHODO's recent award-winning campaigns exemplify the creative approach Hosoda seeks to recognize. The "Hands on Such" campaign utilized 3D printer-voice recognition technology to aid visually impaired education, demonstrating empathetic, human-centered innovation.
Ito's "Shellmet" project, which created biomimetic helmets from recycled scallop shells, earned him recognition in Campaign Asia 40 Under 40 2025. The work highlights Japanese creative directors' focus on sustainability and material innovation.
The agency's consistent performance extends beyond Japan. TBWA HAKUHODO won Gold for "Smart Eye Camera" at ONE Asia Creative Awards 2025, reinforcing regional creative dominance.
Formed in 2006 as a joint venture between Hakuhodo (60% share) and TBWA Worldwide (40%), TBWA HAKUHODO operates within a network spanning over 100 countries globally. The agency's core DISRUPTION methodology challenges conventional wisdom across marketing, products, services, and organizational levels.
The MAD STARS 2026 Executive Jury includes senior leaders such as Raja Rajamannar from Mastercard, Aurora Straton from Google Creative, and Tara McKenty from AKQA, representing global perspectives on creative evaluation standards alongside Hosoda's Japanese cultural lens.
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