Industry heavyweight Wayne Deakin has been appointed chair of the Chip Shop Awards as it returns.
Chip Shop Awards
After a two-year hiatus, The Drum is bringing back its infamously irreverent and boundary-pushing Chip Shop Awards this September. The relaunch comes at a pivotal moment for the advertising industry, which has recently faced controversies over authenticity and the growing presence of AI in awards submissions.
The tipping point for many came at the 2025 Cannes Lions, where the Creative Data Grand Prix was revoked after it was revealed that the case study films had been manipulated using AI. The incident has sparked intense debate across the industry, with Cannes Lions now moving to implement stricter rules to enforce truth, fairness, and transparency in award entries.
But these new boundaries could potentially come at a cost. While they aim to safeguard credibility, they risk stifling the more provocative, speculative and satirical ideas that don’t conform to traditional commissioning or client approval processes. As some creatives see it, the industry may be playing it too safe.
Originally launched to celebrate the kind of ideas that other awards can’t (or won’t) touch, the Chip Shop Awards have always embraced fake ads and spec work, and the creative mischief that doesn’t get past legal or client sign-off.
“The industry is in danger of disappearing up its own guidelines,” explained The Drum’s editor-in-chief Gordon Young. “While others are tightening their rules, we’re loosening our collars. This is a show that celebrates the kind of brilliant, twisted ideas that would never make it past legal, let alone a nervous client. But that’s the point. It gives young creatives a space to be bold, be stupid, be brilliant, and maybe even get noticed. And it gives us all a chance to find fresh talent and fresh ways of thinking.”
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To lead the charge, The Drum has enlisted Wayne Deakin, the former global executive creative director at Wolff Olins, as chair of the revived awards. Deakin is known for his global brand work and his outspoken views on the creative process. For him, the Chip Shop Awards are a necessary antidote to a risk-averse culture, and he’s “honored” to take on this role.
“Our industry needs this kind of mischief right now,” he said. “When I was starting out, I didn’t even know jobs like this really existed. And today, for young or hungry talent, getting noticed is harder than ever. Big award shows can feel like gated communities – expensive, political, and sometimes celebrating work that barely even happened.”
With categories such as Best Work for a Client You Don’t Have and the Cease and Desist Award for Best Use of Plagiarism or Adaptation, the awards will be free to enter for students and The Drum subscribers. Entries can be everything from rough ideas and sketches to polished films, which will be reviewed by a jury of some of the advertising industry’s most creative thinkers.
Entries will close on September 5, with the winners revealed on September 25 at The Drum Live.
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“Everything here is fake and completely unfiltered. Go big, be ridiculous, push ideas too far, use AI, break the rules. That’s what makes it brilliant. It’s a playground,” continued Deakin.
“I spend my days helping global CEOs and brands show up in the world, and there are always rules, approvals, and limits. These awards are the binary opposite. No legacies, no stakeholders. No restrictions. Just a blank page and the pure joy of just making.”
And that’s what matters, he says.
“The world is massively messy – the finances are tight for a lot of people, politics are ugly, AI is rewriting the playbook – but creativity thrives when you give it space to run wild. It’s a breath of fresh air to stop and enjoy.
“Great ideas can come from anywhere. The Chip Shop Awards prove that. And if they help the next generation find their voice, crash the gates, and realize they can belong in this industry, then we’re doing something right. That’s why I’m here – to champion that freedom and give new voices or those looking for a spotlight a place to shine.”
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You can enter The Drum’s Chip Shop Awards before September 5.