Amanda Garcia of LicitaLAB: “There is no single, uniform ‘Latino market'”

During the Cannes Lions International Festival of Creativity 2026, Latino US Day served as a vital stage for discussing diversity, representation, and technological integration. Amanda Garcia, Head of Marketing at LicitaLAB, took part in the impactful Publicitarias session titled Latinas in the Spotlight: When Cultural Intelligence Becomes Creative Power.

Addressing the core theme of cultural intelligence, García challenged the traditional view of Hispanic advertising. “There is no single, uniform ‘Latino market’ or user,” she stated, explaining that the term spans completely distinct realities across Mexico, Chile, Venezuela, and Guatemala. She cautioned international brands against relying on mere translations of general market assets. “If they create a campaign in English, they think, ‘Oh, I’m going to translate it to Spanish and it’s going to work.’ No, it’s not going to work. You need to genuinely learn about the specific country, its culture, its distinct language.”

As a specialist in performance and automation, García bridges the gap between technical efficiency and human insight. She believes a powerful match exists between culture and technology, refuting the idea that automated tools diminish creative or strategic roles. “As marketers, we know how to do our job, but now we have AI. People might say our job becomes easier, but it’s not. I think AI actually makes us think more,” she noted. For her, the ultimate goal is to “bridge those concepts—like human and technology—and learn to use both of them to build a road between them.”

Concluding her insights, García encouraged industry professionals to actively embrace technological tools rather than fear them as a threat to their employment. “AI is not going to take our jobs away; it just forces us to think more, be more intelligent, and be quicker at what we do,” she emphasized. She urged creatives and marketers to claim their space in this evolving landscape immediately: “Don’t leave that space open for another person to step in, learn it, and build amazing things when you could be doing it too.”