Mumbai: BBDO Group India has announced a company-wide initiative titled ‘AI Playdate’, temporarily pausing routine operations across its offices in Delhi, Mumbai, Ahmedabad and Bangalore to encourage employees to engage hands-on with artificial intelligence tools and workflows.
The initiative spans teams across BBDO India, Ulka and Mudra, and is designed to encourage experimentation, curiosity and practical learning around AI adoption within the organisation. Unlike formal workshops or conference-style training sessions, the programme focuses on collaborative exploration, allowing employees across departments to actively use AI tools in real-time.
The company said the exercise includes participation from not only creative and strategy teams, but also employees across account management, finance, HR, administration and support functions.
Speaking about the initiative, Jitender Dabas, CEO, BBDO Group India, said, “Today, at BBDO Group, India we are doing something unusual. We are pausing. Not because we have to. But because we choose to.”
He added, “Because sometimes the best way to move forward is to pause, look up, and invest in what actually takes you there.”
Explaining the idea behind the initiative, Dabas said, “So today, all of our people across BBDO India, Ulka and Mudra — across Delhi, Mumbai, Ahmedabad and Bangalore — have stepped away from regular work for one full day to do one thing: Get hands-on with AI. Together.”
“We are calling it an AI Playdate. And we mean it. No conferences. No webinars. No experts at the front of the room. Just people, keyboards and genuine curiosity.”
According to the company, the initiative is intended to democratise AI adoption internally by encouraging employees across functions to experiment, collaborate and learn by doing rather than through theoretical sessions.
“Experimenting. Building. Trying things. Breaking them a little. Laughing. Trying again. Learning by doing — the way we often learn best,” Dabas said.
Highlighting the broader organisational relevance of AI adoption, he further stated, “And importantly, this is not just for creative or strategy teams. From account management to finance, HR, admin and all support functions — everyone becomes a beginner again today.”
“Because AI adoption in organisations will not come from a few specialists alone. It will happen when organisations become curious enough to engage with it in their everyday lives and work.”
The move comes amid increasing AI integration across advertising, marketing and business operations globally, with agencies increasingly exploring how generative AI and automation can support creative development, planning, analytics and workflow efficiency.
“AI isn’t coming. It’s already here. And the only real way to understand it is to use it. Not read about it. Not watch someone else use it. But actually sit with it, ask it strange questions, and see what happens,” Dabas noted.
He added that the objective was not to create AI experts in a single day, but to encourage sustained curiosity and adoption across teams.
“That’s what today is really about. Not becoming AI experts by 6pm. But each person walking away with one new thing they’ll carry into Monday. And the Monday after that.”
Addressing clients and employees, Dabas concluded, “To our clients — thank you for the grace of this day. We’re doing this for you as much as for us.”
“To the everyone in the BBDO Group India team — let’s be the kids at the playdate who aren’t afraid to pick up the weird toy in the corner. That’s usually where the best stuff is.”
