Publicis Groupe has entered into an agreement to acquire LiveRamp as the advertising group looks to expand its data and AI capabilities.
Publicis CEO Arthur Sadoun announced the deal comes at a time when the advertising industry is being reshaped by AI and economic uncertainty.
“At a time where our industry is being challenged by AI and a difficult micro environment, we are making a bold move to continue to invest in new talent and innovation,” Sadoun said in a company announcement.
The acquisition is aimed at strengthening its position in “data co-creation,” which the agency described as combining data from multiple partners in secure environments to support AI-driven business tools and automated agents.
LiveRamp operates a data collaboration platform that connects and activates data across digital platforms and cloud environments. The platform works with 25,000 publishers and more than 500 data and technology partners across 14 markets.
Sadoun said the addition of LiveRamp would help the agency “become a leader in data co-creation to fuel more intelligent agents for our client to thrive in this world.”
Carla Serrano, Chief Strategy Officer at Publicis said many companies investing in AI are struggling to generate meaningful returns because of weak or fragmented data systems.
“Of $1 trillion in expected AI investment, only 5% will deliver meaningful value,” Serrano said. “The problem with Agentic development isn’t the AI itself. It’s the data foundation.”
She added that “93% of companies don’t have the right data to support effective agentic builds.”
Serrano said combining LiveRamp’s data connectivity tools with Publicis-owned platforms including Epsilon and Publicis Sapient would allow clients to securely connect internal and partner data to build AI systems for areas such as banking, retail and healthcare.
LiveRamp would continue to operate with neutrality after the acquisition. The transaction is still subject to regulatory approvals.
