KARACHI: Pakistan’s public relations, digital, event management and activations professionals gathered in Karachi for the inaugural PREDAXIS conference, organised by the Pakistan Public Relations, Event Management, Digital and Activations Association (PREDA).
The conference, titled PREDAXIS: Minus the Gatekeep, brought together business leaders, marketers, agency professionals, digital specialists, event experts, creators, academics and media practitioners to discuss the future of the industries.
The event opened with a keynote address by Academy Award-winning filmmaker Sharmeen Obaid-Chinoy, who spoke about connection, influence and purpose-driven collaboration built on trust.
The afternoon keynote was delivered by Imtisal Abbasi, managing partner at IAL Saatchi & Saatchi, who discussed leadership and creativity in a rapidly changing communications industry. His key observations included that technology does not destroy value but relocates it, artificial intelligence changes the questions businesses ask, and discernment is becoming a new competitive advantage.
Seven panel discussions examined major changes affecting the sector, including agency-client relationships, AI and reputation, the creator economy, experiential events, human-centred leadership, pitching and the future communications ecosystem.
Discussions on the agency-client relationship focused on the need for greater trust, transparency and shared business objectives. Speakers also highlighted concerns over unpaid pitches and changes to client briefs during the creative process.
The conference also examined the growing influence of AI on reputation, visibility and public trust. Speakers stressed the importance of maintaining human values and judgement as businesses increasingly adopt artificial intelligence.
The creator economy was another major theme, with panellists discussing changing audience behaviour, authentic storytelling and the evolving relationship between brands and creators. Rizwan Ahmed, founder and chief storyteller at Viral Edge, called for greater government recognition and transparency for the growing creators’ industry.
During a session on the future of human-centred business, speakers emphasised empathy and authenticity as qualities that technology cannot replace. Qamar Abbas, executive director of the Pakistan Advertisers Society, said human emotions remained a major source of strength even as technology transformed workplaces.
The final discussions looked at collaboration between businesses, startups and the government, with speakers highlighting both the opportunities and risks created by AI. Jehan Ara, founder and CEO of Katalyst Labs, said Pakistan had significant talent but that startups faced difficulties in securing local investment and expanding internationally.
PREDA said the conference was intended to strengthen professional standards, encourage collaboration and help build a more future-ready ecosystem for Pakistan’s public relations, event management, digital and activations sectors.
PREDAXIS was hosted by PREDA, with Pinnacle X as organising partner and the Pakistan Advertisers Society as exclusive strategic partner. The event was also supported by academic, founding, community, registration, technical and commercial partners.
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