Our campaign to make AI in asset management feel real, useful and a little bit fun has been recognized by TechnologyAdvice. The "It's Not Magic, It's Ultimo" campaign has been named runner-up in the Bold B2B Advertising & AI Visibility category of the 2026 Demandy Awards. Run by TechnologyAdvice, the Demandys recognize B2B technology marketing teams across nine categories. Lenovo took the top spot in our category for its World Cup campaign, so we're in very good company.
This one means a lot to our team. Here's why.
Why we didn't want our agentic AI to feel like magic
Every software company is talking about AI right now. A lot of it sounds like a magic trick - say the right words, wave a wand, and your problems disappear.
The people we build for don't buy magic. Maintenance managers, reliability engineers and environmental health & safety (EHS) leads spend their days keeping real equipment running safely. They know nothing on a plant floor fixes itself, and they're rightly sceptical of anything that promises it will.
So, we went the other way. The message was simple: what Ultimo's AI does isn't magic. It's practical help, in the form of our Digital Workers, that shows up in the things our customers already measure, like uptime, safety and efficiency.
We also wanted to have some fun with it. B2B marketing in our space can take itself very seriously, and humor gave us a way to start a real conversation. That's where the Machine Whisperer and the rest of our cast of characters came in.
One idea, five regions
We ran the campaign across five regions using video, paid media, out-of-home advertising, trade-show experiences and educational content. The channels changed from market to market, but the idea didn't. Whether someone walked past our booth or watched one of our videos, they came away with the same message.
The Demandy judges picked up on exactly what we'd hoped people would notice. They pointed out that the creative wasn't just clever for its own sake. It tied straight back to the outcomes our buyers care about. They also highlighted the campaign's impact on brand awareness, buyer engagement, how the market sees Ultimo's AI, and influenced sales opportunities.
For me, that's the best part. A campaign can win attention and still go nowhere. This one got people talking.
Thank you
A big thank you to our marketing team, who took a risk on a funny idea in a serious industry and made it work in five very different markets. Thanks also to our agency Radish UK and media partners, to our colleagues in sales and product who gave us the substance behind the humor, and to TechnologyAdvice and the Demandy judges for the recognition. And congratulations to Lenovo and all this year's winners and runners-up.
We're not done. AI is moving fast, and our job is to keep explaining it in plain terms that maintenance and operations teams can act on.
Want to see what Ultimo's AI and our Digital Workers do? No wands required. Book a demo and we'll show you.
About the Demandy Awards
The Demandy Awards, presented by TechnologyAdvice, honor B2B technology marketing teams and campaigns that build brand, generate demand and connect with buyers. The 2026 awards covered nine categories. See the full list of winners at go.technologyadvice.com/demandy-awards-2026
