UMBERTO ONZA

A multitalented and internationally renowned creative leader, AI strategist, educator, and award-winning designer, Umberto Onza works at the intersection of creativity, technology, strategy, and business transformation. With a background in industrial design and design management, and education in both Finland and Switzerland, Umberto brings a practical design mindset to AI: understanding people, systems, workflows, and how ideas become real products, services, and experiences.

He currently works as Head of AI at TBWA\Helsinki, where he leads AI-related strategy, education, workflow development, and implementation across creative, strategic, production, design, and operational processes. His background also includes over a decade in TBWA’s NEXT Innovation Unit, where he has helped develop new concepts, prototypes, products, and technology-driven brand experiences. As part of TBWA\Worldwide’s global AI task force, Umberto participates in knowledge-sharing and strategic discussions around AI, helping align thinking, best practices, and practical adoption across the TBWA agency network.

Through his own AI and design practice, Umberto consults companies on AI transformation, workflow optimization, custom AI solutions, AI agents, agentic workflows, creative automation, and customer-facing AI applications. His focus is on helping organizations move beyond experimentation and use AI to create real business value.

His work has been recognized internationally with Red Dot Awards, Eurobest Innovation Awards, Fast Company’s World Changing Ideas Awards, The One Show Awards, and multiple international film festival awards. His AI-generated short film The Kalevala earned him the Best First-Time Filmmaker award at the MEI International Film Festival in India in 2024.

Born into a Finnish-Italian family, Umberto brings a distinctly European perspective to his work: Nordic clarity and persistence combined with a holistic, human-centered approach to creativity, craft, and technology.