Business
AI Bias and Ego Clashes in the Agency Market
Seiji Morita analyzes how creative purism keeps agencies from solving real-world problems for small businesses.
Seiji Morita discusses industry prejudice against artificial intelligence in visual design alongside ego battles among marketing agencies. The conversation explores how accessible tools enable small businesses to survive and why marketers must focus on delivering concrete results.
Seiji Morita, CEO of Agência Omamori, spoke in a conversation with Bruno Gimenes on Marketing - The Podcast about unproductive debates in the advertising industry and the bias against small business owners using artificial intelligence.
In the video above, the conversation explores how aesthetic disputes and vanity distance marketing professionals from what truly matters to their clients' operations. For Morita, many agencies waste time judging assets created with accessible tools instead of understanding their own position in the market. "One thing I dislike in the industry is an agency that doesn't know how to position itself," Morita states, noting that professionals get annoyed when a small business owner turns to AI to create a banner or promotional material.
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Positioning Mistakes and AI Criticism
According to Morita, outrage over AI-generated work reveals a fundamental misunderstanding of client profiles. When a small business owner decides to produce their own artwork rather than hire a team, it simply signals that the business does not yet have the demand or budget for a structured agency's scope.
Morita stresses that publicly criticizing these efforts is an unnecessary waste of operational energy. "If it solves the business owner's pain point, there's no reason for a company to get dragged into a debate like that, you know? Like, come on, I have 10 clients here. Am I going to argue with some guy who made an AI graphic? Man, you're wasting energy for nothing on something that won't help you at all," Morita explains.
Democratizing Access for Small Businesses
When evaluating the impact of technology on smaller operations, Morita draws a parallel to the arrival of tools like Canva and advocates for a pragmatic view of marketing's role. For street market vendors or local shops, an immediate saving of R$ 100 or R$ 200 represents cash-flow survival.
"Man, now that AI is here, let's look at the glass half full or half empty. Because the half-empty view ignores how many small convenience stores couldn't invest in marketing before—or still can't—and today can actually produce something," points out Morita. To him, if the asset fulfills its commercial purpose of attracting customers, aesthetic criticism loses all meaning: "Look, you can analyze whatever you want, but don't criticize the guy; he's out there making sales."
Corporate Vanity and Generational Shifts
Bruno observes that marketing forums and groups frequently center on polarized discussions between veteran advertising professionals and new dynamics introduced by Gen Z. Instead of debating solutions that speed up delivery and drive efficiency, the industry often gets caught up in ego battles over creative purity.
Morita reinforces that the choice of tools—whether Photoshop, Canva with Affinity, or generative models—depends on the operator's technical skill and the end goal. A marketer's focus must remain on delivering value and driving sustainable growth for client accounts, without getting distracted by judgments over how small business owners handle their initial marketing.
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