SINGAPORE, May 12, 2026 /PRNewswire/ — Marketing leaders from across APAC recently convened at the Marina Bay Sands for The B2B Marketing Summit. The event provided a platform for senior executives to discuss the evolving challenges of B2B marketing, while also marking the 10th anniversary of the summit’s organiser, The Ortus Club.
Over the past decade, the agency has grown from hosting localised roundtables to organising executive knowledge-sharing events for major technology and SaaS organisations, including Canva, OpenAI, Twilio, Freshworks, Stripe, PayPal, and NVIDIA.
How are B2B marketing leaders navigating the AI era?
Jess Circi, Co-Founder and Managing Partner, opened the summit by acknowledging the extraordinary talent gathered at the Marina Bay Sands. Emphasising that this is the most exciting and high-stakes time to be in the field, she framed the core challenges of AI-driven visibility, the crave for human-centric branding, and complex customer journeys. As Circi Maruyama noted: “This room right now welcomes marketing leaders from some of the most ambitious B2B organisations in the region, if not the world. People who are actively figuring out how to navigate this slightly insane time we’re facing in B2B marketing.”
Reflecting on the changing dynamics of the profession, she added:
“Marketing is no longer just ‘support’ for sales. More and more CMOs are turning into Chief Revenue Officers and finally grabbing those seats on the board.”
With nearly 2,000 years of collective marketing experience in the room, the day was set to tackle how leaders are turning these high-stakes challenges into strategic advantages.
How can B2B brands stay relevant amidst zero-click searches?
The core theme of the day centred on maintaining human connection in a digital-first, AI-driven landscape. Navigating this new reality, Constance Tan, speaking on behalf of Ahrefs, shared data regarding zero-click searches and the rise of AI overviews. Tan noted that “AI overviews reduce click-through rates by about 30 percent, and only 38 percent of top ten results appear in AI answers. The rules are not exactly the same. Brand and video mentions are becoming more and more important as sources for the AI machine.”
Nicholas Kontopoulos, representing Twilio, expanded on this theme by highlighting the shift in how buyers educate themselves: “We are starting to see this play out in terms of how our end customers are procuring content. They are now going dark because they are going in by the LLM. It is no longer just about individual buyers, but the buying units involved in making a decision.”
Furthermore, Karen Ko from SailPoint emphasised the critical need for human oversight and data quality in AI integration, stating that “the human factor plays a very critical role in this journey to ensure quality. The output of AI is only as good as the data you feed it—garbage in, garbage out. We must maintain human review and shared governance.”
What makes intimate B2B networking effective in a digital-first world?
The event incorporated several interactive networking initiatives designed to foster genuine connections. Attendees connected using icebreaker cards scattered throughout the room, complemented by a bespoke Twilio cupcake cart that kept the energy dynamic throughout the day. Behind closed doors, VIP attendees and sponsors convened for an unrecorded, private 3-course lunch, an exclusive format that allowed executives to discuss panel topics in greater detail without the pressure of a recording. To top off the experience, a highly coveted raffle prize was provided by The Stag Steakhouse, a recognised venue for B2B events and executive roundtables in Singapore.
Why are event content creators essential to modern B2B campaigns?
The summit also served as a live showcase for The Ortus Club’s expansion into event content creation and podcast curation. On-site, the organisation brought its CMO Chats podcast to life with an active podcast corner. Anya Africa, Head of Operations, interviewed key marketing leaders, while Managing Partner Jamie Aclan conducted floor interviews. This addition to the event portfolio reflects a broader industry demand to capture insights, engage target audiences, and pair events with tailored B2B campaign content.
For those who were unable to attend, curated summaries and discussion breakdowns from the summit can be found at https://b2b-singapore.ortusclub.com/.
Interested in sponsoring an event worth attending? Book a meeting here.
About The Ortus Club
The Ortus Club is a global B2B marketing agency specialising in executive events, roundtables, and summits. Founded on the belief that meaningful connections are built through face-to-face interaction, the agency facilitates executive knowledge-sharing and lead generation for global brands.
Media Contact
The Ortus Club Email: content@ortusclub.com
Website: https://www.ortusclub.com/
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SOURCE The Ortus Club
