A creative tool to inspire,
not give you the answers.

Springboards has officially launched, unveiling a transformative AI platform purpose-built for creative professionals in the advertising industry to help creative teams explore more ideas faster, and uncover new inspiration. Co-founded in Australia by former agency strategists Pip Bingemann and Amy Tucker, Springboards has already garnered the support of over 120 agencies worldwide, including Cummins & Partners, Jellyfish, BMF, TRG, SAMY, and Cutwater. Backed by $5 million in seed funding from Blackbird Ventures, the largest venture capital firm in Australia, Springboards is primed to reshape the future of creativity.

“Creativity in advertising is under siege,” said Amy Tucker, Co-founder of Springboards. “Shrinking margins, skyrocketing pitching costs, and ever-higher client expectations are threatening the craft. We built Springboards to help creatives do what they do best: think big, explore boldly, and stay original.”

Handpicked as part of the first Google for Startups Accelerator: AI First program, Springboards was proven to generate 10–30x more creative diversity than OpenAI, Anthropic, and Gemini combined. For agencies worldwide, it’s a game-changer in terms of inspiration.

Springboards offers a suite of nine AI-powered tools, each designed to amplify creativity at every stage of the process—from uncovering insights and generating ideas to validating concepts and crafting campaigns. Unlike off-the-shelf AI tools, which aim for a single “right answer,” Springboards embraces the complexity of creativity, fostering collaboration between humans and AI. By generating a diverse range of imaginative ideas, it becomes a true creative partner—one that sparks variation, fuels exploration, and enhances the creative process rather than replacing it.

Key features include:

• Insights Digger: Extracts brand insights from vast data sets.
• Campaign Concepts: Generates fresh creative ideas tailored to different tones and objectives.
• Validator Tool: Provides evidence to back up strategic decisions and creative approaches.
• Sparks Feature: Allows users to adjust the AI’s spontaneity, encouraging unexpected creative leaps.

“We designed Springboards to be a partner, not a replacement,” said Pip Bingemann, Co-founder of Springboards. “AI shouldn’t rob the industry of its soul—it should expand its creative horizons. With our platform, agencies can explore more possibilities, break conventions, and push the ceiling of creativity, ensuring the work isn’t just faster, but more daring, original, and inspired.”

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A New Standard for AI in Creativity

Springboards is already earning praise from creative leaders. “Springboards is a game-changer,” said Tim Collier, National Head of Strategy at Cummins & Partners. “It helps teams focus on the most interesting and challenging part of our jobs—finding original ideas that connect deeply with people. It’s not about devaluing creativity; it’s about enhancing it.”

Christina Aventi, Chief Strategy Officer at BMF refers to Springboards “as a handy go-to tool.” She says “it helps uncover insights to marinate upon that improve your thinking… it gives you stimulus that can shift where you were first going, to push you into more interesting places. More insights, more ideas and it’s actually surprising what triggers a new thread of your thinking, helping you make connections you wouldn’t ordinarily.”

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“Springboards is like having a well-trained strategy partner who can sharpen your ideas or gut-check your thinking in the blink of an eye,” says Monik Ladha, Brand Strategy Director, at TRG. “It’s changing the way I approach assignments and workshopping problems.”

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Tom Roach, VP Brand Strategy, at Jellyfish, part of the Brandtech Group said “our strategists love using Springboards. It’s proving incredibly useful. Helping them get to great briefs and ideas faster than ever before. It’s like having a strategy partner always by your side to riff with and bounce ideas off. It’s great when you’re a global team like us, everyone’s dispersed around the globe, and some strategists are the only ones in their market. It’s quickly become part of our daily AI diet. To us having Humans-in-the-loop is incredibly important. Maybe a Human x Springboards AI = the modern strategy team?” 

Springboards also stands apart in its commitment to fostering collaboration. Its Canvas tool feature allows teams to work together seamlessly across disciplines and locations. 

Built by Creatives, for Creatives

The platform’s origins are rooted in the personal experiences of its founders. During the pandemic, Amy and Pip—whose résumés include stints at Ikon, UM, and McCann—taught themselves to code as a way to improve their own creative workflows. What began as a side project has evolved into a global movement, with agencies from New York to New Zealand adopting the platform. Kieran Browne, Chief Technology Officer at Springboards, adds another layer to this foundation—an artist at heart who went on to earn a PhD in machine learning, seamlessly blends creativity with deep technical expertise. Before AI tools became widely available, he was already experimenting with them at Google, exploring their potential and pushing the boundaries of what was possible. Kieran’s perspective bridges the gap between development and creative work, ensuring the platform isn’t just built for creatives, but by those who truly understand the nuances of the craft.

“At Springboards, we believe the real enemy isn’t AI—it’s bland, boring, and safe ideas,” said Pip. “Our tools are designed to put the PLAY back into the creative process, giving teams the freedom to explore and innovate without compromise.”

About Springboards

Springboards is an AI-powered platform built to accelerate creativity in advertising. By offering tools specifically designed for creative agencies, the platform empowers teams to explore more ideas, faster, without sacrificing the craft of great work. Founded by industry veterans Pip Bingemann and Amy Tucker, Springboards has already partnered with 120+ agencies globally and secured $5 million AUD in seed funding from Blackbird Ventures.

For more information, visit Springboards.ai or contact hello@springboards.ai.

In a recent episode of The NDA Podcast with Katie Cadwell, co-founder of branding studio Lucky Dip, our Springboards co-founder Pip Bingemann and Jess Macintyre, co-founder of Mac+Moore,  dived deep into the hot topic: who’s better at coming up with ideas—humans or AI? Spoiler: It’s not a competition; it’s a collaboration. 

We grabbed some insightful gems from the conversation. Read on to hear more about their thoughts on where AI can be a powerful tool for creatives, where it might fall short, and why it’s essential for creativity to stay grounded in human skill and craft.

“Human + AI” and Why Experience Still Matters

Pip kicked things off by challenging the classic “AI vs. Human” narrative. The big insight? Humans and AI together are more potent than either alone. Research suggests that working with AI actually “levels up” everyone involved. Pip’s take is that AI will really benefit those who’ve already developed their craft and have already learned how to creatively problem solve. 

Watch what he thinks AI is adding to someone who already feels like they're at the top of their game. 

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But there’s a warning here, too: AI makes it easy to coast. It’s a tempting shortcut, but Pip emphasizes that if you haven’t put in the time to develop a strong creative voice, AI won’t do it for you. AI can accelerate a skilled hand, but it’s not a substitute for a point of view or real experience.

In a world where technology has always been an enabler, the smart approach is using AI as a collaborator, NOT a replacement. AI will likely never fully match the depth and intuition of human creativity. But it can certainly speed up problem-solving and help teams—especially smaller ones—be more efficient without sacrificing quality.

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Will Everything Start to Look the Same?

One of the most powerful moments in the conversation was Pip’s take on a potential AI-driven “vanilla future.” Picture it: brands all start to blend together, looking and sounding like copies of each other, optimized to death by algorithms. If we lean too heavily on AI for creativity, there’s a risk of homogenizing the world—a dystopian future Pip (a self-proclaimed dystopian geek), would rather avoid.

Instead, creatives should “use AI against itself,” flipping it from a tool of conformity to a tool of innovation. AI should help us break down barriers, not box us into them. Used wisely, AI could provide us with surprising, fresh perspectives that push creativity in new directions.

The True Value of Creative Agencies in an AI-Driven World

As AI gets more powerful, clients may start to question the role of agencies. Why pay for creative services when a machine can crank out content? Pip’s answer: Creativity is all about breaking patterns and offering something unexpected, which AI alone can’t do.

At the end of the day, creative agencies bring more than just an output—they bring a point of view. For high-value clients, it’s not about the deliverable alone; it’s about the partnership, the unique perspective, and yes, even the “throat to choke” when things go sideways. AI can’t replace that, no matter how efficient it becomes.

Navigating the AI Hype Cycle Without Losing What Makes Us Human

Jess talked about, in an era of FOMO and “FOBO” (fear of being obsolete), everyone’s jumping on the AI bandwagon. She goes on to say how there’s this narrative about talking about innovation and such but people aren’t thinking about what it actually is and means for society. The crux of it is that real creativity requires that we respect and defend the human element in our work. AI is just a tool, and how we use it determines whether we’re truly innovating or just riding the hype.

In short: AI can help us be more efficient, tackle the blank-page problem, and even generate fresh ideas. But it’s up to us to make sure the work still has heart. As Pip says, “We’ve got to fight harder for the value of creativity and respect the craft.”

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How to Handle Gender Bias and Expanding Access

The subject of AI’s inherent gender bias came up quite a bit and they started off the conversation talking about how Midjourney’s AI tools have been in the news for race and gender bias that users have identified. Jess remarked that she’s very cognizant of how we can learn from it, be more mindful and work towards a more inclusive future that is representative of society. There’s tons of research so far on gender bias in AI tools, so there’s no denying it but only learning and moving forward. 

AI has the possibility to democratize access to creativity, lowering barriers for underrepresented voices across the globe. Pip talked about how wherever you are in the world, whether you’re in South America, India, or Africa, “AI welcomes more people in. You don’t need a fancy degree or expensive tools.” That’s where AI truly shines—making space for new players, new perspectives, and new ideas.

For small studios, freelancers, or indie creatives, AI levels the playing field. A solo creator can compete with global agencies if they’re transparent about using AI as a competitive edge. One freelancer using Springboards remarked, "I feel like with Springboards, I can take on any agency in the world as one individual." And that’s such a powerful response to the process.

The takeaway? AI isn’t a shortcut—it’s a springboard. When used with intention, it empowers creative humans to stay in the driver’s seat, break the mold, and keep making work that matters.

Check out the full Podcast episode here.

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The advertising industry is in a strange place

Somewhere between chasing clicks and feeding the algorithm, something got lost. The creativity that once defined this field—big ideas, bold campaigns, truly different thinking—got buried under “self-serve” ads, popularity contests, and a relentless drive to please the middle. It feels like we’ve entered what some are calling the “Age of Average,” where everything seems tailor-made for safe, widespread appeal but lacks the soul that once made ads unforgettable. The Springboards team? We think it’s high time for a change.

As AI sweeps through the industry, the question isn’t if it’ll change advertising—it already has. The real question is, will AI be a lifeline to help us out of the creative hole we’ve dug? Or will it dig us in deeper? At Springboards, we see a way forward where AI isn’t the enemy but the creative ally we’ve been waiting for. We believe that with the right tools—and a little bravery—the industry can be revitalized, not just to reflect culture but to break it wide open. Here’s a bit of our journey to this vision and why we’re just getting started.

How Did We Get Here? A Quick Diagnosis of the Problem

Our founder, Pip Bingemann, summed it up perfectly at Cannes in Cairns: “AI is ripping apart the ad world, and damn, isn’t it about time?” What he means is that AI isn’t inherently the problem here. Sure, the machines are here, but they’ve always been around in one form or another. The real issue lies in how we’ve used these tools so far, often in ways that limit creativity instead of pushing it forward.

Three major factors have contributed to this stifling of creativity:

1. Advertising Became Self-Serve: The shift toward digital ads made it possible for everyone to access and create campaigns with minimal expertise. This self-service model may be efficient, but it also means that thoughtful, well-crafted storytelling often takes a back seat to quick, cheap, and easy solutions.
2. Relevance Over Distinction: The pressure to appeal to the masses has reduced creative expression to whatever happens to be popular right now. As a result, ad content has become predictable, losing the unique edge that makes ads stick.
3. The Tyranny of Numbers: Metrics rule everything, and we’ve all felt it. When the focus is solely on views, clicks, and conversions, there’s little room left for originality. We’ve become slaves to what the numbers tell us is “successful,” often at the cost of creative risk-taking.

So here we are, with an industry that’s found itself boxed in. Popularity has replaced boldness, and mediocrity is dressed up as success. But just blaming the machines (or the algorithms) is too easy. The truth is, clients, agencies, and even creatives ourselves have all contributed to this mess. But it’s not too late to fix it.

Enter Springboards: A New Way to Think About AI and Creativity

At Springboards, we’re choosing to look at AI differently. Instead of viewing it as a factory for cookie-cutter ideas, we see AI as a way to get back to the heart of creativity. With Springboards, our goal is to design a tool that works with creative humans, not replacearound them. The machines may be powerful, but so is human imagination—and when those two powers come together, the possibilities are huge.

What makes Springboards different is our approach: we don’t just throw in a bunch of features and call it innovation. Instead, we focus on what actually matters for creatives today. We’re building a platform that fuels unique, inspired, and even risky ideas—because the best ideas are often the ones that break the rules. Springboards is designed to help you push past the safe and obvious, bringing bold ideas back into the spotlight. This isn’t another trend-chasing tool; it’s a creative partner with a shared goal—to take creativity to the next level.

Building Momentum: The Early Buzz

Since our beta launch, we’ve seen an amazing response. Industry leaders, like Zoe Scaman, have shared their excitement, and her tweet alone sparked an unexpected wave of interest. It was proof that creatives everywhere are craving something that feels real—a tool that challenges them, pushes them, and ultimately brings more fun back to the work they love. With demo requests piling up and a waitlist growing, we’re more motivated than ever to bring this new creative approach to as many people as we can.

But this is only the beginning. Zoe’s reaction, along with others, shows us that there’s a real hunger for change. Creatives want a tool that works with them, not against them, to shake up the industry norms. Springboards.ai is just that—a fresh way forward, built to make the creative journey exciting, unpredictable, and, most importantly, ours.

What’s Next? The Official Launch and Beyond

The excitement so far is humbling, but we know the real journey is just beginning. With the official launch of Springboards just around the corner, we’re gearing up to make an even bigger impact. We’re not interested in offering yet another “solution” that falls short on creativity. Instead, we’re focused on providing a tool that sparks curiosity, pushes boundaries, and turns the creative process into an adventure again.

This is a call to every creative out there tired of the “Age of Average.” We’re building Springboards for those who believe that creativity can, and should, disrupt, inspire, and even annoy sometimes. If you’re ready for something different, we invite you to join the waitlist and take part in this journey with us.

So here’s to the end of the average and the beginning of something extraordinary. Creativity deserves more, and with Springboards.ai, we’re just getting started.