Salesforce vs StayinFront

Software Stocks Rally in Q3; Cramer Sees More Upside

In the third quarter, software stocks rebounded strongly as concerns about AI disrupting traditional business models eased. The iShares Expanded Tech-Software Sector ETF (IGV) rose 17%, while the semiconductor ETF fell 11%. Salesforce rallied 46%, helped by the launch of 'Claudeforce' with Anthropic, and Microsoft gained 37% on strong Copilot demand and Azure growth. Workday and Veeva also saw significant gains. Jim Cramer highlighted the comeback as the defining market story and remains bullish on Salesforce and Microsoft, while noting that higher interest rates pose a risk. Cybersecurity stocks like CrowdStrike also performed well. The article reflects market sentiment and investor perspectives but does not introduce new corporate events or significant AdTech developments.

• Software stocks rebounded in Q3, with the IGV ETF rising 17%.
• Salesforce rallied 46% in Q3, partly due to the 'Claudeforce' integration with Anthropic.
• Microsoft gained 37% in Q3, driven by Copilot demand and Azure growth.

Growth7 Launches AI Marketing Platform for CRM Pipeline

On October 1, 2026, Growth7, Inc. announced the launch of its AI marketing platform, Growth7, designed to complement existing CRMs such as Salesforce, HubSpot, Pipedrive, and Zoho. The platform reads CRM and customer signals, recommends or executes next actions across email, SMS, AI voice, and social channels, and writes results back to contact records. Co-founded by Joseph Sarro (CEO) and Justin Pennington (President & CTO), the platform offers CRM-native workflows, multi-channel campaigns, lead enrichment from sources like Google Maps and LinkedIn, content studio, social automation, website management, and analytics. It aims to unify marketing actions with CRM data, eliminating the need for migration or a second CRM, and is available immediately.

• Growth7 launched its AI marketing platform on October 1, 2026.
• The platform integrates with Salesforce, HubSpot, Pipedrive, and Zoho CRM.
• Co-founded by Joseph Sarro (CEO) and Justin Pennington (President & CTO).

Salesforce Signs Definitive Agreement to Acquire Listen Labs

Salesforce announced a definitive agreement to acquire Listen Labs, an AI-powered customer research platform that automates interviews and analysis. The deal, estimated at around $2 billion (terms not disclosed), is expected to close in Salesforce's fiscal Q4 2027, pending regulatory approval. Founded in 2023, Listen Labs offers a network of over 50 million research participants and supports interviews in 120+ languages. Its AI capabilities include research design, participant recruitment, interview conduction, response analysis, and creating 'digital twins'—AI simulations of customer behavior. The acquisition will integrate Listen Labs into Salesforce AI Labs, aiming to bring qualitative research into CRM workflows, enhancing Marketing Cloud and Service Cloud with dynamic customer context for AI agents. Founders Alfred Wahlforss and Florian Juengermann will remain CEO and CTO, respectively. This move could make customer research a living data source within Salesforce's ecosystem, though integration specifics are yet to be detailed.

• Salesforce announced a definitive agreement to acquire Listen Labs, an AI customer research platform.
• Financial terms were not disclosed, but reports estimate the deal at around $2 billion.
• The transaction is expected to close in Salesforce's fiscal fourth quarter of 2027, pending regulatory approval.

StayinFront Announces New Partnerships, Executive Appointments, and Product Renaming

StayinFront announced a multi-year licensing agreement with a global cleaning and household goods leader in LATAM, the appointment of Fraser Neil as Commercial & Strategic Director EMEA, expansion of a snack food partnership in France, and promotion of Aaron Eccleston to Managing Director APAC. Additionally, the Interactive Shelf product has been renamed to Shelf Builder.