South Korean agency Paulus and AI platform Re-Be.World launched Be.Ark at Cannes Lions 2026, a local-first AI agent platform that stores a user's accumulated knowledge and workflows on their own computer rather than in the cloud. The tool addresses a growing industry concern over data ownership, allowing professionals to retain control over the proprietary intelligence they build over their careers.
Shifting from file-centric to intelligence ownership
Paulus Chief Creative Officer Thomas Hongtack Kim hosted a seminar at the festival to discuss the shift in how the industry handles data. He argued that current AI models rely on centralized data collection, where user information and decision-making processes are fed back into large language model training.
Paulus Creative Director Saffaan Qadir added that creative work has traditionally been file-centric. Research, briefs, and presentations document outcomes but rarely capture the underlying thinking. "If intelligence is a living layer that evolves through interaction with the creator, then the real question becomes - who owns that intelligence?" Qadir said.
Local-first storage for confidential work
Be.Ark changes this dynamic by keeping agent memories and accumulated knowledge stored locally on the user's computer. The companies designed the platform with a local-first approach to provide greater security for confidential client material protected by non-disclosure agreements.
Practitioners exploring AI for Creatives can use the platform to build agents that integrate their specific daily workflows. The system also supports broader AI Agents & Automation strategies by reflecting individual working styles without sending proprietary data to external servers.
Building a personalized digital persona
Studio K110 CEO and CCO Woori Nam tested the platform as a beta user. "As I kept talking and building interactions with Be.Ark's AI agent, at some point it became another being that resembled my own way of thinking and judgment at work, and I loved that I had made it and owned it," she said.
Kim explained that the philosophy behind the tool is for an AI agent to evolve into a distinct persona holding a user's taste, memory, and knowledge. To reflect this, every agent built on the platform is assigned its own face and name.
Why this matters for creatives
The launch gives advertising and design professionals a practical method to protect their proprietary knowledge from being absorbed into public training datasets. By keeping their operational intelligence local, teams can adopt AI tools without sacrificing the confidentiality required by client contracts. The platform is available as a free download from Re-Be.World.
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