Agentic Capabilities are Redefining How People Search, Discover, and Shop: Siddharth Shekhar, Google

“The search box is no longer just a container for simple text; it has completely transformed into an intelligent, multimodal, and conversational partner. We are moving from a world of simple keyword queries to a world of rich, conversational intent, where users leverage Google Search as a true partner in discovery and decision making,” said Siddharth Shekhar, Director – Govt. & PSUs, BFSI, Fintech, Education & Auto, Google, at the 20th edition of India’s premier marketing conference, Marketing Conclave (MarCon), organised by the Internet and Mobile Association of India (IAMAI) and powered by Google.

Distinguished industry representatives at the 20th edition of India’s premier marketing conference, Marketing Conclave (MarCon), organised by the IAMAI, powered by Google, in Mumbai

“In the emerging agentic era, the marketing opportunity shifts from search visibility to providing the precise answers and context that enable AI agents to act on a consumer’s behalf—always with explicit permission. We are working with the industry to lay the foundation of agentic commerce with open standards like the Universal Commerce Protocol to help brands thrive and build deeper, more valuable customer relationships. As we see, agentic capabilities are redefining how people search, discover, and shop," he added.

AI has become the talking point for the entertainment industry. At a session on ‘The Producer’s Paybook: TV, OTT and What Comes Next’, Goldie Behl, Filmmaker & Founder, Rose Audio Visuals, said, "AI is a tool that will enhance creativity. Ultimately, it will be human intelligence and AI working together. Human intelligence will always be driving storytelling.” Behl further added that AI should be viewed as a creative tool rather than a replacement for writers, while stressing the need for regulations around how AI learns from existing content and intellectual property rights.

Behl noted that OTT has undergone its own evolution, with the next wave of opportunities coming from brand-backed storytelling. “But, creators must understand and authentically communicate a brand's ethos,” he added.

The second day of the conference saw participation from notable industry experts, including Prashant Gutch, Head, Search & Shopping, Ads Marketing, Google; Poorva Bhatikar, Industry Head - Mobility, Google; Archit Goyal, Search & Performance Specialist, Google; Aviral Chandra, President Marketing, Shriram General Insurance; Pankaj Sharma, Chief Executive Officer & Director, MGID; Arpit Mankar, Senior Vice President – Head – NonBollywood, Shemaroo Entertainment; Somnath Mukherjee, Head of Programmatic and Performance Marketing, Reliance Retail, and Vinay Bhartia, Director - MEA & West Asia, Semrush, who shared insights on the evolving digital marketing landscape. MarCon featured an expo with participation from more than 30 leading marketing and technology companies. Over two days, the conference witnessed a footfall of more than 2,000. 

Among the partners of Marketing Conclave 2026 are Affinity Global Advertising, Consumr.ai, Connect Network, DoubleTick, Google, Helo.ai, mFilterIt, PubLive, Vonage, BC Web Wise, LS Digital, Truecaller, Semrush (An Adobe Company), ORIGIN8, Exotel, Shemaroo and many more.

About Internet and Mobile Association of India  
The Internet and Mobile Association of India (IAMAI) is a not-for-profit industry body with more than 800 members, including Indian and multinational corporations, as well as start-ups. IAMAI has been instrumental in shaping India’s digital economy. IAMAI advocates free and fair competition, and progressive and enabling laws for businesses as well as for consumers. The overarching objective of IAMAI is to ensure the progress of the internet and the digital economy. Its major areas of activities are public policy and advocacy, business to business conferences, research, promotion of start-ups and promotion of consumer trust and safety.