Global marketing service provider WPP launched WPP Open | China, an agentic marketing platform tailored for the Chinese market, on May 8.

The company said the platform, the first fully localized agentic marketing platform developed by an international advertising company specifically for China, will serve as a cornerstone for WPP's transformation toward greater integration and as a powerful engine to elevate its capabilities, supporting the long-term growth of its clients in the AI era.

According to Chris Reitermann, CEO of WPP in Greater China, over the past two years, supported by its global leadership, WPP China has been on a journey to respond more quickly and effectively to evolving marketing demands in China.

Recently, WPP's global business restructure comprising four operating units — covering creative, media, production, and enterprise solutions — also reinforced this commitment.

"WPP Open is the platform that sits underneath all of them. It unifies all of WPP China's capabilities, enabling teams to work seamlessly with agentic workflows and leverage the most advanced local large language models," said Reitermann. "To date, this (the launch of WPP Open | China) is the most powerful validation of WPP's transformation in China."

A fully localized platform

Having operated in China for more than 40 years, WPP has been dedicated to creating customized offerings that blend its global marketing expertise with local insights. The new WPP Open | China platform represents the latest advancement in this endeavor.

"WPP Open | China is not just our global platform translated for China. We've rebuilt it in China, for China," said Austin Winters, president of WPP Tech China.

WPP Open | China integrates more than 15 leading local AI models and model families across text, image, video and audio.

Winters said that enabling WPP teams to use AI in a way that is locally relevant, operationally reliable and aligned with China's market.

An AI-driven future

According to Zhang Yaqin, founding dean of the Institute for AI Industry Research at Tsinghua University, and non-executive director on the board of WPP who delivered a message at the launch event on May 8, China, with more than 6,000 AI companies by the end of 2025 and strong research and development capabilities, is now able not only to embrace AI but also to actively define it. Reitermann, who has been working in the Chinese market for nearly 30 years, echoed Zhang.

Reitermann said that in China, WPP has been helping multinational companies navigate the Chinese market, will continue to innovate to adapt to the Chinese market, especially the rapid evolving AI-driven future.

"I absolutely believe that China will lead in AI adoption — there's no doubt in my mind. Our industry will be at the forefront of this adoption, as marketing services in general is an early adopter of technology innovation. That's why we're pushing this very proactively; we know our business is changing, and we know the industry will change," said Reitermann.

"In five years, the shape of our business will be very different. Our business will be more empowered by technology, AI and data than ever before."

Despite AI-driven transformation being central to WPP's global Elevate28 Strategy — a three-year initiative to enhance the company's performance — both Reitermann and Winters emphasized the continued importance of talent in WPP.

"Experience, craft and creativity remain the foundation of great marketing. AI gives our people new ways to apply them at greater ambition, depth and precision," said Winters.

"Great outcomes do not come from simply pushing an 'easy button'. AI can support every stage of the process, but human judgement and creative experience are what build lasting brands and drive growth." said Winters.

Unlocking more opportunities

Looking ahead, amid the market's complexity, WPP will continue to leverage its expertise to help clients balance performance and branding for long-term growth.

"There's an imbalance at the moment. Given the challenging business environment, many companies are prioritizing immediate sales over long-term brand building. I do think our job is to work with our clients to somehow balance performance and brand at the same time," said Reitermann.

"Many marketing people think it is an either-or choice. Either I spend money on branding, or I spend money on performance. But I believe that in today's world, businesses need to blend the two together. You can not invest in something that does not also drive performance, and you shouldn't invest in something that ends up harming your brand. In fact, we believe brands matter even more in today's cluttered environment. Strong brands will make companies succeed in the long-term, and we see many domestic companies investing in it.

"The currency of success is shifting, but the fundamental goals remain: build a brand and drive business," said Reitermann.

As an increasing number of Chinese companies seek to expand their operations globally, Reitermann said WPP China is eager to leverage its expertise and global network to provide them with a clear roadmap for entering overseas markets.

"We have a huge opportunity to work with Chinese companies going global. Currently, all multinational agencies combined handle only about a quarter of China's total media billing. That shows massive growth potential," said Reitermann.

"I'm quite optimistic about the future. If we adapt our business, transform and stay relevant without straying from our core strengths, we will succeed. Some of our enduring client partnerships are based on the belief in building strong brands in the long run while relentlessly focusing on driving business growth, delivered with a combination of creativity and adoption of AI. Our most successful clients do not come to us just for performance marketing."

Part of this video content is AI-generated.