“This was a masterclass on the cultural shift around AI and creative thinking.”
AI democratised publishing and flooded feeds with sameness. Beyond the Beige Summit 2025 brought together founders, futurists and creative leaders to show how humans and machines can create together without losing what makes content real. It became a movement to urgently bring back what makes content unmistakably human: story, nuance and point‑of‑view.
What we tackled at Beyond the Beige Summit 2025
LinkedIn was already awash with content that looked alike, sounded alike and felt alike—so we gathered a global stage to push back. Formatting tricks and templated takes had replaced perspective. The algorithm still rewarded volume while audiences still craved quality.
The summit became a movement: story over templates, voice over volume, human over beige.
- Did AI kill creativity or unleash it?
- What happened to trust when every brand published at scale?
- How did leaders, employees and entrepreneurs stay visible, credible and bold in a sea of sameness?
This wasn’t another webinar. It was the first global summit dedicated to urgently beating AI beige with practical frameworks for keeping content distinct, credible and human at scale.
The book behind the summit
The Beige Code — Volume 1
How the summit unfolded
Half-day virtual summit 21 November 2025.
- 13:00Watch session
Welcome & kickoff
The beige flood is here and why it matters to anyone who creates
Andrew SeelCo-founder GhostartGhostart founder Andrew opened the summit with a call to arms: how AI amplified sameness and what it takes to keep creativity human. - 13:10Watch session
The most human company wins: creativity, community and trust in the AI age.
Mark SchaeferFuturist, Bestselling author Marketing Rebellion & Audacious: How Humans Win in an AI Marketing WorldMarketing futurist Mark Schaefer opened Beyond the Beige with a call for bold, human-centred creativity in an automated world. He explored why the brands that dare to be authentic, emotional and connected will define the next era of marketing and how AI can amplify, not replace, what makes us human. - 13:35Watch session
Original thinking in the age of AI
Ashley FausHead of Lifecycle Marketing, Portfolio Atlassian, Author Human-Centered MarketingAs AI flooded the feed with content, originality mattered more than ever. We explored how genuine authority is built—through clarity, curiosity and depth of ideas—to create work that earns trust and stands the test of time. - 14:00Watch session
Why beige doesn't stick: What the brain really responds to
Dr Carmen SimonCognitive neuroscientist, Chief Science Officer - Corporate VisionsCognitive neuroscientist Dr Carmen Simon revealed why sameness slips from memory while emotion and story stay. It was a science-led look at what our brains truly respond to and why authentic, creative content cuts through where automation can't. - 14:25Watch session
Influence reimagined. Building trust and creativity when AI can post for you
Andy LambertAdobe, Co-founder ContentCal, Author SOCIAL 3.0 & Spheres of InfluenceThis session revealed what truly builds influence now that AI can do the posting for you—trust, creativity and consistency. Whether attendees were growing a personal brand or leading a global one, they discovered the new rules of visibility that still feel human. - 14:50Watch session
Employee advocacy 2.0: Humans + machines
Eva BaluchovaGlobal Employer Branding Lead Danfoss
Nathan VennekensGlobal Social Employee Advocacy Manager CapgeminiWhat happens when employees or founders become your best storytellers? This panel showed how AI helped people express ideas, grow confidence and build community. Whether you were leading a large organisation or building your own business, the session demonstrated how authentic advocacy is evolving. - 15:15Watch session
Leading out loud: How founders cut through AI noise
Sarah BoneCo-founder & CMO, YEO Messaging
Dave StubberfieldFounder, Carter ConsultancyFor founders, visibility isn't vanity—it's strategy. Our panel shared how showing up on LinkedIn helped them grow their businesses, attract clients and build trust, and how AI is reshaping how they create and communicate. It was packed with honest stories, practical lessons and proof that real voices still cut through the AI noise. - 15:40Watch session
The trust shift. Building credibility when everything looks real
Anita Veszeliex-Ericsson Global Social Media DirectorAI made it easier than ever to imitate humanity and harder than ever to trust what's real. We explored how credibility is being rebuilt in this new landscape. From transparency and brand safety to empathy and human connection, the session shared practical ways to protect what matters most: trust. - 16:05Watch session
Cracking the beige code: What makes content blend in or break out
Andrew SeelCo-founder Ghostart
Nigel Jay CooperCo-founder GhostartGhostart founders Andrew Seel and Nigel Jay Cooper unpacked what they've learned studying thousands of posts, the subtle signals that make content feel alive and how AI can help train your taste. Everyone saw real examples and a sneak peek at Ghostart's Beigeometer—an AI coach for creativity. - 16:30Watch session
The human algorithm: Why human intelligence still beats automation
Jack HubbardFounder Propellernet, Dream ValleyAs technology accelerated, the most powerful differentiator wasn't efficiency—it was emotional intelligence. In this conversation, we explored how self-awareness, openness and story create the kind of trust, culture and creativity that no machine can replicate. It was a grounded look at how leading with humanity builds stronger teams, deeper relationships and better business results in an automated world. - 16:55Watch session
Wrap & call to action: The movement to beat beige
Andrew SeelCo-founder GhostartA short, high-energy close invited everyone to keep their content human, their creativity alive and to keep fighting the beige.
The book behind the summit.
The Beige Code — Volume 1
Based on real conversations with experts at the Beyond the Beige Summit, The Beige Code looks at what happens just before ideas are shared — when people rewrite them to avoid standing out.
Featuring insights from Mark Schaefer, Ashley Faus, Dr Carmen Simon and other leading voices.
Presented by Ghostart
AI can make drafting fast, but it flattens what makes your writing yours. Ghostart is a LinkedIn content platform that fights back — building a voice profile from guided exercises, then scoring every draft against it with the Beige‑ometer™. The result: content that's efficient to produce and still sounds like a human wrote it.