The Panathenaikos, Isokrates’ last work, shows distinctive formal features in its combination of a speech and a dialogue. As a first step, this paper will present the argument that the Panathenaikos is one integral work, not merely a speech that has been amplified by an appendix in the form of a dialogue. In a second step, it will present the case that this experiment of combining a speech with a dialogue fits in with Isokrates’ general aspiration for literary innovation, in this case especially as a reaction to Plato’s Phaidros.