灵眸大赏十一年：慢慢长成了出发时期待的样子

文 | 曾巧Ivy Morketing Group 创始人兼CEO、灵眸大赏发起人

去年，X 平台首次官方直播灵眸大赏的时候，并定向投放了400多万美国市场用户，影响着纽约麦迪逊大道的那些营销精英、商业精英们，我想起了2016年说过的一句话：“要做东方辐射全球的戛纳创意节、纽约广告周。”

那时，第一届 Morketing Summit 刚刚起航。现在回头看，话说得确实很大。但我的愿望很实在：中国有这么大的市场，有这么多正在发生的商业创新，应该有一个从这里出发的平台，把值得讨论的问题、值得认识的人，带到全球同行面前。

十年之后，当越来越多海外平台想要连接中国企业，第一步会想到 Morketing，比如奈飞、Uber、亚马逊、Pin、Google、meta等，当他们连接中国市场的时候，都选择了Morketing；当中国企业走向世界，有了越来越多自己的经验与表达，我会觉得，我们当初想做的那件事，真的在发生。

灵眸大赏正在慢慢长成我们出发时期待的样子。

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今年，她将走到第十一届。把过去十届的主题放在一起看，我才更清楚地意识到，我们和这个行业，已经一起走了这么远。

2016年，第一届的主题是“千亿级移动营销市场”。人们的生活向手机迁移，品牌也在寻找新的位置。那时候大家最关心的是，移动互联网带来了怎样的机会，自己能不能抓住。首届峰会就设置了品牌、电商和出海专场。看向海外，从一开始就在我们的视野里。

到了2017年，我们用“平行世界”来理解这个变化中的市场。做品牌的人、做效果的人，国内的平台和海外的平台，都在各自的世界里快速向前。我想让这些原本不常交流的人，有机会听见彼此。峰会从一天变成两天，132位嘉宾走上舞台，首届灵眸奖也在这一年诞生。

人聚得越多，问题也越往深处走。2018年，我们提出“洞察时代，探寻本质”，把品牌、文娱、手游、创投、新科技等不同领域放到同一个讨论空间里。流量很热，但我们已经想追问：消费者为什么选择你？技术的变化，最后能给生意留下什么？

2019年，主题变成了“破局”。增长的压力越来越具体，大家需要找到新的做法。那年，我们引入脱口秀，让严肃的行业讨论有了另一种开场；也上线了可以提前预约的商务洽谈服务，让一次台上的分享，有机会接着变成台下的深入交流。我开始更清楚地理解，一个平台的价值，也在于让人们真正走近彼此。

随后，疫情来了。

2020年的“进化”，有了切身的分量。生活、消费、工作的方式都在改变，办活动的人也得重新学。我们增加线上直播和直播探场，把会场带到更多无法到场的人面前。那一年，峰会与奖项正式整合升级为“灵眸大赏”。我们一边讨论企业如何进化，一边也在完成自己的进化。

2021年，我们以“共生”为题，第一次把灵眸大赏从北京战略挪到上海。品牌、平台、服务商之间的关系，越来越影响一家企业能走多远。对我们也是一样：每一届能办成，都离不开嘉宾、合作伙伴、观众和团队的投入。做得越久，我越知道，这件事靠一个人的热情走不到今天。

2022年度的第七届，我们选了“穿透”。这一届最终延期到2023年3月才举办，连续三天，围绕“数智未来”“内生力量”“生而全球”展开。如今再看这两个字，心里还是有分量的。当时我在开场里说，本该在去年年底交的作业，延期到今天，还是要办下来。

因为大家都在经历困难，都想弄明白，眼前的变化究竟意味着什么，企业接下来该怎么走。越是这样的时刻，把人聚在一起，把各自正在尝试的方法讲出来，就越有意义。那一届，我们把“穿透”写在主题上，也用即便延期，穿透时间，也要继续把它办下来的行动，回应了这个词。

2023年末，第八届的主题是“回归”。经历了那么多变化，我们把讨论重新落到消费者、产品和品牌身上，也用国内外平台专场，让不同市场的经验相互参照。机会很多，但一家企业得知道，什么能力需要自己长期去做。

2024年，我们把第九届的主题定为“十年”。这一年，也是 Morketing 创办十周年。我们回看移动互联网如何改变商业，同时把目光投向下一个十年。品牌、全球化、数智与AI、游戏应用，以及播客，出现在同一届峰会上。尤其是播客创作者加入后，关于品牌如何与人建立关系的讨论，又多了一种细腻的视角。

到了2025年，第十届“智启”，我们进一步把AI放进中国市场与全球化的具体问题里。与全球平台、中国品牌、游戏和短剧出海企业一起，讨论智能技术会怎样改变增长。也正是在这一年，X 的官方直播，让来自这里的讨论有了更直接走向全球的通道。

过去，我们常常望向麦迪逊大道，想知道世界顶尖的营销人在讨论什么。今天，我们也有机会把中国市场正在发生的变化、中国企业正在形成的经验，带到他们面前。想到这里，我对2016年的那份愿望，有了更具体的感受。

十届走过来，灵眸大赏的边界一直在往外延伸。品牌人可以在这里听游戏公司的全球化经验，电商从业者可以走进文娱与创作者的讨论，做技术的人也能听见品牌在真实经营中的难处。游戏、动漫、内容、互联网、AI，和品牌、电商、渠道之间，有越来越多值得相互借鉴的东西。

我在意这种行业的宽度。一个人长期待在自己的圈子里，很容易把熟悉的经验当成全部。跨出去听一听，才可能发现，自己苦苦思考的问题，另一个行业已经换了一种解法。

地域上的广度也是如此。北美、欧洲、东南亚、中东、拉美、非洲，各有各的消费者和商业环境。2019年的舞台上，我们就已经在讨论中国企业怎样成为海外市场的“本地人”。对我来说，全球视野要落实到这些具体差异里：同一个产品，换一个市场，人们为什么买，为什么不买，信任又该怎样建立。

这些年，海外平台来寻找中国企业，中国企业去理解全球市场，我们在中间做的连接越来越多。灵眸大赏Morketing Summit 也因此逐渐成为一个立足中国、连接亚太、与全球营销商业同行持续对话的平台。我为此欣慰，也知道，这份信任需要我们继续拿出有价值的内容去回应。

而有了宽度和广度，还得把问题谈深。嘉宾愿意讲清一个判断是怎么形成的，一次尝试为什么失败，一个方法在什么条件下有效，现场的交流才会有思想的密度。听完之后，能让人重新考虑自己原来的选择，这样的讨论，我觉得才值得大家专程来一趟。

我理解的高度，也在这里：能不能更早看见那些正在改变行业的问题，能不能让真正身处变化前沿的人，把还在探索的东西拿出来交流。一个新现象刚出现时，未必已经有标准答案，我们需要给不同的判断留下空间。

办到十年，时间又给了这个平台另一种厚度。以前台上谈过的方法，后来有没有成立；当时被寄予厚望的机会，几年后变成了什么，都可以放回现实里重新看。演讲、对话、案例和年鉴，一年年积累下来，让我们得以持续追问同一个行业，也更有依据地判断眼前的变化。

这也是我今天对活动IP的理解。一场活动结束后，人与人还愿不愿意继续交流，提出的问题还有没有人接着往下想，到了下一年，大家是否仍然觉得值得回来，这些都比“又办了一届”更让我在意。办过延期的那一届，我更知道，能够再次相聚，需要我们珍惜，也需要我们让这次相聚值得。

说到底，我们搭的是一个平台。平台要有自己的判断，也要有足够的开放和包容，让别人的经验进入，让不同的意见碰撞。十年积累下来的信任，应该帮助我们把门开得更大。

所以，走向第十一年，我想邀请更多行业资深专家、商业实践者和新一代创造者，参与灵眸大赏的内容共创。一起提出问题、设计议题，也一起把讨论往深处推进。让熟悉这个行业的人带来经验，让正在改变这个行业的人带来新的视角。Morketing 愿意认真做好召集和连接的工作。

我们给2026年定下的主题是“智生”。从去年的“智启”走到今年，我想继续追问：当智能开始进入企业的日常经营，新的商业究竟会怎样生长？

如果消费者越来越多地通过AI了解产品、比较选择，品牌怎样被理解？当内容与投放越来越自动化，一家企业靠什么建立信任，又该保留什么独特的能力？团队的工作方式怎么变，营销最终为企业创造了多少价值？这些问题，会影响未来的预算、组织和竞争，也值得全球同行放到一起讨论。

今年，我们将通过一场主论坛、五大分论坛和多场闭门交流，把品牌、电商与交易、游戏应用、文娱创作者、AI增长放在同一个商业视野里。我希望来到这里的人，既能看见前沿的变化，也能带着更清楚的判断，回到自己的工作中。

十年过去，我对“灵眸”这两个字的理解，也更具体了。

一双有灵性的眼眸，一眼看到底的商业洞察力。这份期待，从最初到今天都没有变。市场越复杂，信息越多，我们越需要看清一件事为什么发生，它和自己的企业有什么关系，哪些值得投入，哪些需要耐心。

十年里，谢谢愿意把经验拿出来分享的嘉宾，谢谢信任我们的合作伙伴，也谢谢每一位来到现场、在线上认真听过一场讨论的朋友。还有一起把事情落到细处的团队。灵眸大赏能慢慢长成今天的样子，是因为你们都在其中留下了自己的部分。

第十一年，我依然想把她做得更有思想、更开放，更能与世界对话。让从东方出发的商业思考，在AI时代成为全球同行值得参考的风向。——这是我今天仍然愿意为之投入的事情。

2026年12月4日，上海。我们带着走过十年的积累，也带着新的问题，再次出发。

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Ten years in Morketing Summit is becoming what we set out to build

MORKETING SUMMIT

By Ivy Zeng Founder and CEO, Morketing Group | Founder, Morketing Summit

Last year, X carried its first official livestream of Morketing Summit, supported by a campaign targeting more than four million users in the United States. As conversations from our stage reached beyond Asia toward the marketing and business community of Madison Avenue, I found myself thinking about something I had said in 2016: "I want us to build an event in Asia with the global reach of Cannes Lions and Advertising Week New York."

We had only just launched the first Morketing Summit. Looking back, it was a big thing to say. But the wish behind it was simple. China had an enormous market and so much business innovation under way. There ought to be a place, built here, that could bring the questions worth discussing and the people worth knowing to a global audience.

Ten years on, more international platforms turn to Morketing when they want to connect with Chinese businesses. Netflix, Uber, Amazon, Pinterest, Google and Meta are among the companies that have chosen to work with us. At the same time, Chinese companies are building businesses around the world, with more experience of their own to share and a stronger voice in the conversation. I can see the thing we hoped to build beginning to take shape.

Morketing Summit is gradually becoming what we hoped it could be.

This year will be its eleventh edition. Looking back at the themes of the first ten, I can see more clearly how far we have traveled alongside this industry.

In 2016, our first theme was "The RMB 100 Billion Mobile Marketing Era." People were moving more of their lives onto their phones, and brands were looking for their place in that shift. Everyone wanted to understand the opportunities of the mobile internet and whether they could seize them. Even that first summit had dedicated sessions on brands, ecommerce and international expansion. Looking beyond China was part of the idea from the beginning.

In 2017, "Parallel Worlds" described a market in which brand marketers and performance marketers, Chinese platforms and international ones, were all moving quickly within their own circles. I wanted people who rarely spoke to one another to have a chance to listen. The summit grew from one day to two, 132 speakers took the stage, and we launched the first Morketing Awards.

2016 and 2017: the first summit grew into a two-day gathering with 132 speakers.

As more people joined us, the questions became more searching. Our 2018 theme, "The Era of Insight," brought brands, entertainment, mobile games, venture capital and emerging technology into the same conversation. Traffic was the obsession of the moment, but we were already asking what lay beneath it: Why do consumers choose you? What does a change in technology actually leave a business with?

By 2019, "Breaking Through" reflected a growing pressure to find new sources of growth. That year, we opened with stand-up comedy, giving a serious industry gathering a different kind of beginning. We also introduced a service for booking business meetings in advance, so a conversation onstage could continue in greater depth offstage. I was beginning to understand more clearly how much a platform's value depends on helping people make meaningful connections.

2018 and 2019: looking beyond traffic, and turning conversations into connections.

Then the pandemic arrived.

Our 2020 theme, "Evolution," became very personal. The ways people lived, shopped and worked were changing. Those of us who organized events had to learn again, too. We added livestreams and live tours of the venue, opening up the experience to people who could not be there. That was also the year we brought the summit and awards together under the Chinese name Lingmou Dashang. While we discussed how businesses could evolve, we were doing some evolving of our own.

In 2021, under the theme "Symbiosis," we made the strategic decision to move the summit from Beijing to Shanghai for the first time. A company's relationships with brands, platforms and service providers increasingly shaped how far it could go. The same was true for us. Every edition depended on the speakers, partners, audience and team who gave their time and energy to it. The longer I have done this, the more certain I am that one person's enthusiasm could never have brought us this far.

2020 and 2021: adapting the event, then moving from Beijing to Shanghai. The 2021 photographs come from Ivy's personal event archive.

For the seventh edition, scheduled for 2022, we chose "Breakthrough." It was eventually postponed until March 2023. Over three days, we explored a future shaped by data and intelligence, the strengths businesses could build from within, and what it meant to be born global. That theme still means a great deal to me. In my opening remarks, I said we were finally delivering the event that should have taken place at the end of the previous year. Late as it was, we were determined to make it happen.

People were going through difficult times. They wanted to understand what the changes around them meant and where their businesses should go next. At a moment like that, getting people together to talk honestly about what they were trying felt especially worthwhile. We had put "Breakthrough" on the program. By finding a way to hold the event after all, we gave the word a meaning of our own.

Later in 2023, the eighth summit returned to consumers, products and brands with "Back to Core." After so much upheaval, we wanted to bring the discussion back to the work of building a business. Sessions with Chinese and international platforms let people compare experience across markets. There were plenty of opportunities to pursue, but each company still had to decide which capabilities it needed to build and sustain for itself.

Two editions in 2023: the postponed seventh summit in March, followed by the eighth later that year.

In 2024, we called the ninth edition "A Decade." It was Morketing's tenth anniversary as a company. We looked back at how the mobile internet had changed business and ahead to the next ten years. Brands, global expansion, data and AI, games and apps, and podcasting all had a place in the program. Podcast creators, in particular, brought a more intimate perspective to the question of how brands build relationships with people.

By the tenth edition in 2025, "Awakening Intelligence," we were examining what AI could mean for business growth in China and abroad. Global platforms, Chinese brands, and companies taking games and short-form dramas into international markets joined us to discuss how intelligent technology could change their businesses. X's official livestream that year gave those conversations a more direct route to a global audience.

2024 and 2025: marking Morketing's tenth anniversary, then opening the summit's next conversation on AI and global growth.

For years, we had looked toward Madison Avenue to find out what the world's leading marketers were talking about. Now we had a chance to bring them the changes unfolding in China and the experience Chinese businesses were gaining. The ambition I had voiced in 2016 was becoming something I could see.

Across ten editions, the summit's boundaries have kept expanding. A brand marketer can hear how a games company built an international business. Someone in ecommerce can join a conversation with entertainment companies and creators. A technology company can hear what a brand is struggling with in its day-to-day operations. There is so much for people in games, animation, content, internet businesses and AI to learn from those working in brands, ecommerce and distribution, and vice versa.

That breadth matters to me. Spend long enough in one industry, and it is easy to mistake familiar experience for the whole picture. Step outside it and listen, and you may discover that someone in another field has already found a different way to approach the problem you have been wrestling with.

The same is true across markets. North America, Europe, Southeast Asia, the Middle East, Latin America and Africa each have their own consumers and business conditions. Back in 2019, we were already discussing how Chinese companies could become local businesses in markets abroad. A global outlook has to take those differences seriously. When you take the same product to a new market, why do people buy it? Why don't they? How do you earn their trust?

As international platforms have sought connections with Chinese companies, and Chinese companies have worked to understand global markets, we have helped more of those conversations happen. Morketing Summit has gradually become a meeting place rooted in China, connected across Asia-Pacific, and in regular conversation with the wider world of marketing and business. That gives me a great deal of satisfaction. It also means we have to keep earning the trust people place in us.

Bringing different industries and markets together only takes us so far. The conversations have to go deep. A speaker needs to be willing to explain how they arrived at a judgment, why an experiment failed, or the conditions in which a method works. When a discussion makes someone reconsider a decision they had already made, I feel it has been worth the trip.

I also want us to notice the questions that are beginning to change the industry, and to invite people working on them to share what they are still figuring out. When something new emerges, there may be no settled answer. We need to leave room for people to disagree.

Ten years gives us another kind of perspective. We can look back at an idea presented onstage and ask whether it held up. We can revisit an opportunity that once generated enormous excitement and see what it became. The talks, conversations, cases and yearbooks we have gathered allow us to keep asking questions about the same industry over time, and to judge today's changes with a little more experience behind us.

That has changed how I think about building an event that lasts. What matters to me is whether people keep talking after they leave, whether someone takes a question further, and whether, a year later, they still feel it is worth coming back. Those things matter more than simply having held another edition. After the summit we had to postpone, I became even more aware that being able to gather again is something to value, and something we have to make worthwhile.

We are building a place for people and ideas to meet. It needs a point of view, but it also needs to be open enough to welcome other people's experience and let different opinions challenge one another. The trust built over ten years should allow us to open the doors wider.

As we enter our eleventh year, I want more industry experts, business practitioners and a new generation of creators to help shape the summit. I want us to develop questions and sessions together, and to keep pushing the discussion further. People who know the industry well can bring the benefit of experience; those changing it can bring a different view. Our job at Morketing is to bring them together and make those conversations possible.

Our theme for 2026 is "Born Intelligent." After last year's "Awakening Intelligence," I want to keep asking what new ways of doing business become possible when AI is part of a company's everyday operations.

If consumers increasingly use AI to discover products and compare their options, how does a brand make itself understood? As content production and advertising become more automated, how does a company earn trust, and which distinctive capabilities should it keep building for itself? How will teams work differently, and how much value is marketing actually creating for the business? These questions will shape budgets, organizations and competition. They deserve a conversation that crosses markets.

This year, one main forum, five specialist forums and a series of closed-door discussions will bring brand building, commerce, games and apps, entertainment and creators, and AI-led growth into the same conversation about business. I hope people will leave with a clearer sense of what is changing and better judgment to bring back to their work.

After ten years, the meaning of Lingmou has become more concrete for me, too. The name evokes a perceptive eye: the ability to see through complexity to what is really happening in a business. That was our hope at the beginning, and it still is. As markets become more complicated and information more abundant, we need to understand why something is happening, what it means for our own company, what deserves investment and what requires patience.

I want to thank the speakers who have been willing to share what they know, the partners who have trusted us, and everyone who has come to the venue or listened carefully online. I also want to thank the team who have made the countless details work. Morketing Summit has become what it is because each of you has helped shape it.

In our eleventh year, I still want to make this a more thoughtful, more open gathering, with a stronger connection to the world. I want ideas developed here to help our global peers understand where business is going in the age of AI. It is work I still care deeply about.

We will meet again in Shanghai on December 4, 2026, with ten years of experience behind us and new questions to work through together.