Publicis Groupe Hong Kong has appointed Rhys Turner to the newly created role of Head of Creative Technology. Turner, who is originally from Australia, has spent 20 years working across emerging technologies and creative practice.
His background spans agency, client, and production environments, with projects across Saudi Arabia, Istanbul, and Shanghai. He began his career teaching electronic media before moving into interactive and digital work, including video game and app development, UX, coding, and experiential design. In 2023, Turner left Sydney-based design and technology company T&DA to join Chanel in Hong Kong as Innovation Technologist, APAC.
At Publicis Groupe Hong Kong, his focus will be on working with creative teams on client work and scaling AI and innovation across the Groupe. Turner will report to Christopher Lee, Chief Creative Officer at Publicis Groupe Hong Kong, and Tom Kao, Chief Executive Officer at Publicis Groupe Hong Kong.
“Rhys is here to supercharge our fluency in data, tech, AI and more,” said Christopher Lee, Chief Creative Officer at Publicis Groupe Hong Kong.
Creative tech is becoming more than just a discipline that drives creative campaigns – it’s also becoming the glue that connects people from various backgrounds to help shape talent in this age of AI, with the ambition to keep raising the bar.
“We’re not just looking to Rhys to create innovative commercial solutions for our clients, but to apply his love for art and code as well as his curiosity to always make things smarter across all disciplines at Publicis Groupe in Hong Kong.”
Turner also joins Publicis Groupe APAC’s Creative Tech Collective, a community of more than 20 creative technologists and approximately 200 innovation specialists across the region, led by Laurent Thevenet, Head of Creative Technology, APAC.
“The fun part of being a creative technologist is constantly experimenting with tools and technologies, and then acting as an informant to agencies, suggesting fresh approaches for everything from strategy to ideation and execution,” said Turner.
“We look forward to the impact that Rhys will bring, pushing cutting-edge tech and AI-led creativity and amplifying the chemistry between creative, media, data, tech, and production,” added Tom Kao, Chief Executive Officer at Publicis Groupe Hong Kong.
“Creative tech is becoming more than just a discipline that drives creative campaigns – it’s also becoming the glue that connects people from various backgrounds to help shape talent in this age of AI, with the ambition to keep raising the bar.”
