WPP acquires InfoSum to expand AI capabilities
WPP has announced the acquisition of InfoSum, a data collaboration platform, which will become part of GroupM, the company’s media investment group.
According to WPP, the acquisition is aimed at supporting the development of new marketing solutions that integrate artificial intelligence and data infrastructure. InfoSum’s technology allows data to be connected across different platforms without being moved or shared directly, using a cross-cloud data collaboration method.
The integration of InfoSum’s capabilities with WPP Open, the company’s marketing operating system, is intended to allow clients to use first-party data alongside other data signals from within the InfoSum network, WPP data assets, and GroupM’s media sources.
Clients will be able to apply federated learning techniques to build and train AI models using a broader range of datasets, which WPP says could improve the speed and efficiency of campaign optimisation and audience targeting.
InfoSum’s data network includes inputs from companies such as Channel 4, DIRECTV, ITV, Netflix, News Corp, Samsung Ads, and data partners including Experian, TransUnion, Circana, Dynata, and NCSolutions.
The acquisition is part of WPP’s broader shift toward using AI and data collaboration technologies as the digital advertising industry adjusts to reduced reliance on cookies and traditional identity-based data systems.
Mark Read, CEO of WPP, said, “At WPP, we have been building the technology and data infrastructure that will give our clients a unique competitive advantage in the AI era. Bringing InfoSum into WPP is a major step forward for our data capabilities and the results we can deliver for our clients. It allows clients to stay in complete control of their first-party data, while also giving them access to vastly greater quantities of high-quality, privacy-compliant data and pioneering technology that is not available anywhere else in the market today.”
Brian Lesser, CEO of GroupM, commented: “Directly integrating InfoSum’s global data network and technology infrastructure will allow our clients to create even more value from their first-party data and enable us to train client AI models against the most data, from the most places, at unprecedented scale and speed. Our approach recognizes the importance of identity data to today’s marketing strategies while allowing us to take advantage of the limitless opportunities for growth we can create by moving beyond them. As more and more clients leverage our AI-first solutions, every client model, every audience, and every campaign will benefit from network effects that will exponentially increase their intelligence and competitive advantage.”
Lauren Wetzel, CEO of InfoSum, added: “InfoSum’s mission has always been to reimagine how data powers marketing in a secure, privacy-first, and, most importantly, impactful way for advertisers and consumers. WPP and GroupM are the perfect partners to help us accelerate our impact on a truly global scale. We couldn’t be more excited to join forces with the team at GroupM as privacy and security become non-negotiables, and AI allows us to redefine what’s possible for advertisers and our network of media and data partners.”
InfoSum’s technology enables WPP clients to swiftly deploy secure data environments optimized for federated learning, allowing marketers to rapidly scale their custom AI models and onboard their data faster and more easily than ever before. InfoSum’s infrastructure will remain interoperable with existing platforms and partners to ensure current and future customers can continue driving growth through secure data collaboration. Companies interested in becoming a partner, can learn more at https://www.infosum.com/company/our-partners.
As part of the acquisition, Lauren Wetzel will remain CEO of InfoSum. Wetzel will take on the additional role as Chief Solutions Officer for GroupM, working cross-functionally to develop data driven products and solutions for clients of WPP and GroupM.
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