Disruptive Advertising

Groq Reportedly Raising $650M After Nvidia Deal

Groq is seeking $650 million in new funding from existing investors as it pivots to an "inference neocloud" business that hosts inference workloads on its own AI chips and systems, according to Axios and reported by TechCrunch. The move follows a December not‑an‑acquisition agreement with Nvidia — reported at about $20 billion — that included the departure of several senior Groq employees to Nvidia and a licensing deal for Groq’s hardware technology; that arrangement paid out Groq investors in cash. Interim CEO Adam Winter and interim CFO Matt Eng are leading the company’s shift toward inference hosting for developer and enterprise applications. Investors Disruptive and Infinitium have agreed to backstop the round if other existing investors decline their pro rata shares.

Twitter-WPP Strategic Partnership Announced

The article highlights a strategic partnership between Twitter and WPP Group. WPP units, including GroupM, Kantar, and Wunderman, will gain access to Twitter data to enable more effective campaigns and precise targeting, while Twitter benefits from WPP's global investments in markets outside the United States such as Western Europe, Japan, Mexico, and Brazil. Separately, AppNexus adds two seasoned marketers to its global management team: Brandon Paine, formerly Global Agency Business Leader at DoubleClick, and Jerome Underhill, previously COO and Head of Product & Operations Europe for Advertising.com. In another move, United Internet Media and Jost von Brandis are launching a 24/7 DIGITAL cross-media platform for Digital-Out-Of-Home, mobile, and online advertising, uniting WEB.DE, GMX, and 1&1 with outdoor media offers. Keeeb also announces browser extensions to improve accessibility of its Knowledge Management service.

Two New Hires at Neo@Ogilvy

Neo@Ogilvy, the international Digital Media Network of Ogilvy, announced two additions to its leadership team. Jörn Sorge, 44, has been appointed Client Service Director—a newly created role aimed at elevating advisory quality and client leadership. He comes from Quisma München, where he led the Munich office as Head of Account Management for nearly four years; previously, he held the same role at advertising.com for 2.5 years. Sebastian Biehl, 35, joins as Head of Media Buying, with prior experience as Account Manager Publisher Services at advertising.com and as Head of Publishers' Partnerships & New Business at Bauer Media Group; he also launched his own consultancy in April 2010. The appointments broaden Neo@Ogilvy’s capabilities across Display, Search, Affiliate Marketing, Viral Marketing, Social Media, and Mobile Media. Neo@Ogilvy operates with 800 employees across 33 countries. Source: horizont.net.