Healthcare advertising platform DeepIntent is expanding its programmatic capabilities with new live sports and events targeting tools designed specifically for pharmaceutical and healthcare marketers. The launch aims to solve a long-standing challenge in connected TV (CTV) advertising: accurately identifying, targeting, and measuring premium live sports inventory while maintaining the precision, compliance, and outcome-based measurement standards required in healthcare marketing.

As live sports increasingly dominate television audiences and streaming platforms capture a growing share of premium viewership, advertisers are racing to secure access to some of the most valuable media inventory available. For healthcare and pharmaceutical brands, however, reaching audiences during live events has historically been difficult due to limitations in targeting accuracy, inventory verification, and performance measurement.

DeepIntent is attempting to address that gap with a new suite of Live Sports and Events advertising capabilities built into its healthcare-focused demand-side platform (DSP).

The company announced the launch of tools that allow pharmaceutical and healthcare marketers to identify and activate verified live sports inventory across connected TV environments while optimizing campaigns toward healthcare-specific outcomes.

The timing is notable. According to industry viewership data cited by the company, 96 of the 100 most-watched U.S. television broadcasts in 2025 were live sports events. As audiences continue shifting from traditional television to streaming platforms, advertisers are increasingly directing budgets toward live sports programming, including major events associated with professional basketball, football, baseball, soccer, and women's sports leagues.

While many major demand-side platforms have introduced live TV buying capabilities in recent years, marketers often face a significant challenge: identifying whether inventory is genuinely live or simply categorized alongside broader streaming content.

This distinction is particularly important in healthcare advertising, where campaign performance is often tied to highly specific audience targeting, regulatory requirements, and measurable business outcomes.

DeepIntent's new offering seeks to provide greater transparency through verified live inventory partnerships and proprietary delivery systems built specifically for healthcare advertisers.

At the center of the announcement is AEGIS 1, the company's AI-powered data center infrastructure developed to process and optimize live advertising opportunities at scale. According to DeepIntent, the multi-million-dollar environment is designed to support deterministic targeting and campaign optimization across millions of ad opportunities per second, even during peak viewership periods associated with major sporting events.

The infrastructure reflects a broader trend across the advertising technology industry. As media consumption becomes increasingly fragmented and live streaming audiences surge, demand-side platforms are investing heavily in artificial intelligence and high-performance computing environments to improve targeting precision, bidding efficiency, and campaign performance.

Major advertising technology providers such as Google, Amazon, Microsoft, and Adobe continue to expand AI-driven advertising capabilities as marketers seek more efficient ways to reach audiences across fragmented media ecosystems.

What differentiates DeepIntent's approach is its healthcare specialization.

Healthcare advertising operates under unique constraints compared to traditional consumer advertising. Campaigns often require privacy-safe targeting methodologies, compliance frameworks, and measurement models capable of linking media exposure to outcomes such as prescription lift, healthcare professional engagement, patient education, or treatment awareness.

To address those requirements, DeepIntent's Live Events platform includes several healthcare-focused capabilities. Advertisers gain access to verified live inventory through private marketplace agreements established directly with publishers and supply-side platforms. The company has also developed custom pacing algorithms designed specifically for the short, high-demand windows associated with live sports broadcasts.

Equally significant is the platform's measurement framework. Campaign performance can be evaluated through DeepIntent Outcomes™, a proprietary analytics environment that allows healthcare marketers to assess performance against industry-specific metrics rather than relying solely on traditional advertising indicators such as impressions or clicks.

This outcomes-based approach reflects a larger industry movement toward accountability in healthcare media spending.

Research from Gartner suggests that advertisers are increasingly prioritizing measurable business outcomes over conventional media metrics. Similarly, analysts at Forrester have identified outcome-driven measurement and AI-powered optimization as key priorities for programmatic advertising investments over the coming years.

The emergence of live sports as a strategic healthcare advertising channel is particularly noteworthy. Historically, pharmaceutical advertisers focused heavily on television, search, and health-focused media environments. The growth of streaming sports introduces new opportunities to engage broad audiences while leveraging increasingly sophisticated audience targeting technologies.

For healthcare marketers, the launch represents more than a new media-buying feature. It signals the continued convergence of artificial intelligence, connected TV advertising, healthcare analytics, and outcome-based measurement.

As premium live content becomes one of the most competitive segments of the streaming ecosystem, technology platforms capable of combining verified inventory, privacy-compliant targeting, and healthcare-specific performance metrics may gain an increasingly important role in pharmaceutical advertising strategies.

The broader implication is clear: live sports advertising is no longer reserved primarily for consumer brands. As streaming technology and programmatic infrastructure mature, healthcare marketers are gaining new ways to engage audiences during some of the most watched moments in media.

Market Landscape

The connected TV advertising market continues to experience rapid growth as audiences migrate from traditional broadcast television to streaming environments. According to industry forecasts from Statista and eMarketer, global CTV ad spending is expected to rise significantly over the next several years, driven largely by live sports and premium streaming content.

Within healthcare advertising, marketers are increasingly seeking privacy-safe targeting, deterministic audience intelligence, and outcome-based measurement solutions. As a result, specialized healthcare DSPs are emerging as a distinct category within the broader AdTech landscape.

The intersection of AI infrastructure, programmatic advertising, healthcare analytics, and live streaming inventory is expected to become a major area of innovation as pharmaceutical companies expand investments in connected TV and omnichannel engagement strategies.

Top Insights

• DeepIntent introduced live sports and events advertising capabilities designed specifically for healthcare and pharmaceutical marketers operating in connected TV environments.
• The platform uses verified live inventory partnerships and AI-powered infrastructure to improve targeting accuracy during premium live sports broadcasts.
• AEGIS 1 enables deterministic targeting and optimization across millions of ad opportunities per second during high-demand viewing periods.
• Healthcare advertisers can measure campaigns against pharmaceutical-specific outcomes, including patient engagement and prescription-related performance indicators.
• The launch reflects growing convergence between AI, connected TV advertising, healthcare marketing, and outcome-based media measurement.

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Email marketing platform Constant Contact is expanding its AI strategy with the launch of a new app for ChatGPT, enabling small businesses and nonprofits to create, refine, and deploy email campaigns using conversational prompts. The move reflects a broader shift across the marketing technology industry as AI assistants increasingly become operational interfaces for campaign creation, content generation, and customer engagement.

The race to embed marketing workflows into generative AI platforms is accelerating, and Constant Contact is the latest MarTech provider to bring core campaign functionality directly into ChatGPT.

The company announced the launch of its new ChatGPT app, allowing customers to connect their Constant Contact accounts and generate email marketing campaigns through natural language interactions. Rather than navigating traditional campaign builders, users can draft newsletters, promotional emails, event invitations, and customer communications by describing what they want in a conversational interface.

The launch signals a growing evolution in how marketers interact with software. For years, marketing platforms relied on dashboards, templates, and drag-and-drop builders. Increasingly, vendors are experimenting with AI-powered interfaces that allow users to execute tasks through conversation rather than manual workflows.

For small businesses and nonprofit organizations, which often operate with limited marketing resources, the appeal is straightforward: fewer steps between an idea and a published campaign.

According to Constant Contact, the new integration enables users to generate complete email campaigns, improve subject lines and messaging, create content variations for testing, monitor campaign performance through built-in tracking mechanisms, and move campaigns directly into the publishing workflow.

The announcement places Constant Contact among a growing group of software vendors integrating their platforms with AI assistants. As generative AI adoption expands, software companies are looking beyond standalone AI features and exploring how their products can function within broader conversational ecosystems.

This trend is reshaping marketing technology architecture. Instead of switching between multiple applications for content creation, analytics, campaign management, and optimization, marketers increasingly expect AI-powered assistants to orchestrate tasks across platforms.

The concept aligns with emerging AI agent and workflow automation strategies being pursued by major technology providers including Microsoft, Google, Salesforce, and Adobe. These organizations are investing heavily in AI-driven productivity tools that reduce operational complexity while improving business outcomes.

Email marketing remains one of the most effective digital marketing channels despite the rapid rise of social media, short-form video, and AI-driven search experiences. According to research from Statista, global email users continue to grow steadily, reinforcing email's role as a foundational customer engagement channel. Industry research from Forrester also shows that personalized and automated email campaigns consistently deliver strong returns compared to many digital marketing channels.

Constant Contact argues that AI can accelerate campaign production without sacrificing performance. The company reports that customers using AI-generated marketing tools create and send campaigns approximately 23% faster than those relying solely on traditional workflows. Faster production cycles can be particularly valuable for small businesses that often lack dedicated marketing teams and need to respond quickly to seasonal opportunities, events, and customer communications.

The launch also reflects changing user expectations around software experiences. Businesses increasingly want AI tools that move beyond content generation and help execute complete workflows. Drafting an email is only part of the process; marketers also need deliverability management, audience segmentation, campaign scheduling, performance tracking, and reporting capabilities.

This is where platform integrations become strategically important. While generative AI tools can assist with writing, marketing platforms provide the infrastructure necessary to distribute campaigns, measure engagement, and optimize future communications.

Another notable aspect of the announcement is its focus on accessibility. Historically, sophisticated marketing automation capabilities were primarily available to larger enterprises with dedicated technology teams. AI-powered interfaces may lower that barrier by making advanced marketing functionality easier to use through natural language interactions.

The development comes as AI increasingly influences every stage of the marketing lifecycle—from campaign planning and content creation to customer segmentation, personalization, analytics, and performance optimization. Marketing platforms that successfully integrate AI into practical workflows may gain a competitive advantage as businesses seek simpler ways to manage increasingly complex customer engagement strategies.

For marketers, the broader significance extends beyond email creation. The integration illustrates how conversational AI is evolving from a productivity tool into a central operating layer for marketing technology stacks.

As AI assistants become more deeply embedded in business workflows, the distinction between marketing software and AI interfaces may continue to blur. Platforms that can combine conversational simplicity with enterprise-grade execution capabilities are likely to play a growing role in the next phase of marketing technology evolution.

Market Landscape

The AI marketing software market is entering a new phase where vendors are embedding campaign execution capabilities directly into conversational interfaces. Gartner forecasts continued growth in AI-powered marketing automation as organizations seek productivity gains, workflow efficiency, and scalable content creation.

Within email marketing specifically, AI is increasingly being used for content generation, audience targeting, subject-line optimization, predictive analytics, and automated customer engagement. As adoption grows, vendors are competing not only on automation capabilities but also on how seamlessly those capabilities integrate into broader AI ecosystems.

The emergence of AI-native marketing workflows could significantly reshape how small businesses, nonprofits, and enterprise teams interact with marketing technology platforms over the next several years.

Top Insights

• Constant Contact launched a ChatGPT app that allows businesses to create, optimize, and publish email campaigns using conversational AI workflows.
• The integration reflects a broader MarTech trend toward AI-powered interfaces that simplify campaign creation and reduce dependence on traditional software dashboards.
• Users can generate complete campaigns, refine messaging, test subject lines, and track performance directly through an AI-assisted workflow.
• Constant Contact reports that customers using AI create and send marketing emails approximately 23% faster than traditional users.
• The launch signals growing convergence between generative AI platforms and marketing automation systems as conversational interfaces become operational business tools.

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Scorpion is extending its Customer Advisory Board (CAB) program into the legal industry after an initial rollout among home services businesses generated product feedback that influenced platform development and customer experience initiatives. The move reflects a broader trend across marketing technology providers toward incorporating customer-driven insights into product strategy, service delivery, and platform innovation.

Customer-led product development is becoming an increasingly important differentiator in the marketing technology sector, and Scorpion is expanding its advisory board strategy to strengthen its connection with one of its fastest-growing customer segments: legal marketing.

The company announced that it is extending its Customer Advisory Board (CAB) program to law firms following what it describes as a successful launch among home services businesses, including pest control providers and trade service organizations. The initiative is designed to create structured channels through which clients can directly influence product development, customer experience improvements, and strategic business decisions.

The expansion highlights a growing shift among software and digital marketing providers toward more collaborative product planning models. Rather than relying exclusively on surveys, support tickets, or usage analytics, companies are increasingly establishing advisory groups that bring customers directly into decision-making conversations.

Scorpion's original home services Customer Advisory Board launched in September 2025 with 20 participating clients. According to the company, feedback gathered through the program has contributed to platform enhancements and operational improvements that better align with how local businesses manage marketing, lead generation, customer acquisition, and growth.

The newly launched legal advisory board aims to replicate that model for law firms and legal marketing professionals. Participants will regularly engage with Scorpion leadership to discuss marketing performance, client intake processes, operational challenges, service expectations, and emerging industry trends affecting legal practices.

The initiative arrives at a time when law firms are investing heavily in digital marketing technology to improve client acquisition and operational efficiency. Competition for online visibility continues to intensify as firms increase spending on search engine optimization, local search marketing, paid advertising, reputation management, and client engagement platforms.

Legal marketing has become one of the most competitive segments within local business marketing. Law firms increasingly depend on sophisticated technology stacks that integrate customer relationship management systems, analytics platforms, advertising tools, and intake management software. As a result, technology providers serving the legal sector face growing pressure to deliver solutions that address real-world operational challenges rather than theoretical product roadmaps.

This is where customer advisory programs can create strategic value.

By involving clients directly in platform discussions, marketing technology companies gain access to practical insights that may not emerge through traditional product research methods. Advisory boards often reveal workflow inefficiencies, market shifts, competitive pressures, and customer priorities that help shape future product investments.

The strategy aligns with broader software industry trends. Enterprise technology leaders including Salesforce, Microsoft, Adobe, and Google have long relied on customer councils, beta programs, and advisory groups to guide product development and strengthen customer relationships.

For marketing technology providers focused on local businesses, advisory boards can be particularly valuable because customer needs often vary significantly across industries. A pest control company, HVAC contractor, personal injury law firm, and franchise organization may all require lead generation capabilities, but their operational processes, conversion journeys, compliance requirements, and customer expectations differ substantially.

Scorpion's decision to establish a dedicated legal advisory board reflects that reality. Law firms face unique marketing and client acquisition challenges, including increasingly competitive search landscapes, rising advertising costs, evolving consumer expectations, and growing demand for measurable return on marketing investment.

The announcement also underscores a larger trend in the software-as-a-service (SaaS) market. Product success is increasingly tied not only to technical innovation but also to customer engagement and co-creation. Organizations that incorporate customer perspectives early in development cycles often improve adoption rates, strengthen retention, and accelerate feature relevance.

Industry research supports this approach. According to Gartner, customer-centric organizations are more likely to achieve stronger customer retention and long-term business performance. Similarly, research from Forrester has consistently identified customer feedback integration as a critical factor in product experience and digital transformation success.

Alongside the legal advisory board expansion, Scorpion revealed that insights generated through its broader customer engagement initiatives contributed to the creation of a separate Growth Advisory Board focused on franchise organizations. The move suggests the company is developing increasingly specialized feedback frameworks tailored to distinct customer segments.

For enterprise marketers, legal professionals, and local business operators, the development signals a growing emphasis on collaborative innovation. As marketing technology platforms become more complex and industry-specific, direct customer participation may become a standard component of product development strategies rather than a supplementary initiative.

Market Landscape

The customer advisory board model is gaining traction across the SaaS and marketing technology sectors as providers seek deeper alignment with customer needs. According to industry analysts at Gartner and Forrester, organizations that prioritize customer-centric product development often achieve stronger retention rates, improved user adoption, and more relevant innovation outcomes.

Within legal marketing specifically, demand for integrated marketing, analytics, lead management, and client intake technologies continues to rise. Law firms are increasingly evaluating vendors based not only on technology capabilities but also on their ability to understand industry-specific operational challenges. This trend is encouraging software providers to establish closer relationships with customers through advisory councils, user communities, and collaborative product development initiatives.

Top Insights

• Scorpion is expanding its Customer Advisory Board program into the legal sector after leveraging client feedback from home services businesses to inform platform and service improvements.
• The initiative reflects a broader SaaS trend toward customer-led product development, where advisory groups help shape technology roadmaps and operational priorities.
• Legal marketing continues to evolve as law firms invest in digital acquisition, analytics, intake optimization, and performance-driven marketing technologies.
• Dedicated advisory boards provide software providers with industry-specific insights that traditional surveys and analytics often fail to capture.
• The expansion signals growing demand for collaborative innovation models that connect customers directly with product strategy and decision-making processes.

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The market for journalist request platforms is showing renewed momentum as Connectively, a platform that connects subject-matter experts with journalists and publishers, announced it has surpassed 100,000 users. The milestone comes months after the platform's revival under Featured, an AI-powered public relations platform that repositioned Connectively as part of a broader strategy to modernize media sourcing, expert discovery, and earned media outreach.

The resurgence of journalist request platforms is gaining attention across the public relations and media industries, with Connectively announcing that its user base has exceeded 100,000 members following its relaunch under Featured.

The milestone highlights growing demand for platforms that help journalists, publishers, and subject-matter experts connect more efficiently at a time when media organizations face increasing pressure to produce high-quality content with limited editorial resources.

Connectively's journey has been unusual even by technology industry standards. The platform was discontinued in 2024 under previous ownership, leaving many public relations professionals, independent experts, and publishers searching for alternative ways to source media opportunities. In 2025, Featured acquired the platform and later reintroduced it in 2026, migrating its existing expert-sourcing infrastructure under the Connectively brand.

According to the company, the platform now facilitates a connection between an expert and a publisher every six seconds while supporting approximately 2,500 publishers seeking expert-driven content and commentary.

The announcement arrives amid significant changes in how media organizations source expertise and create content. Traditional journalist outreach methods often relied on email databases, manual networking, and fragmented communication channels. Modern journalist request platforms aim to centralize those workflows by allowing experts to discover relevant opportunities, submit responses, and build relationships with media outlets through a single interface.

In practical terms, Connectively functions as a marketplace for expertise. Journalists and publishers post requests seeking commentary, industry analysis, or subject-matter knowledge. Experts can browse those opportunities, filter requests by topic or publication, and submit pitches directly through the platform.

The model reflects a broader trend toward workflow automation across the public relations technology ecosystem. As AI increasingly influences content creation, media monitoring, and audience targeting, organizations are looking for tools that streamline relationship-building while maintaining human expertise at the center of earned media strategies.

This dynamic has become particularly important as search engines and AI-powered answer platforms place greater emphasis on authoritative sources. Media placements featuring recognized experts can contribute to brand authority, thought leadership, and visibility across both traditional search engines and generative AI platforms.

The platform's growth also underscores continued demand for expert-led content. Research from Gartner has consistently highlighted trust and expertise as critical factors influencing content credibility, while studies from Forrester have pointed to growing investments in content strategies that prioritize authority and authentic subject-matter knowledge.

Connectively now operates alongside Help a Reporter Out (HARO), another journalist request service revived by Featured in 2025. The dual-platform strategy gives users two distinct approaches to sourcing media opportunities: a platform-based workflow through Connectively and a traditional email-driven workflow through HARO.

That positioning reflects broader changes across public relations technology. While AI-powered communications platforms continue to emerge, many professionals still value direct access to journalists, publishers, and editorial opportunities. The challenge for modern PR technology providers is balancing automation with authentic human interaction.

Featured, which launched as an AI co-pilot for PR in June 2026, is betting that both approaches can coexist. The company aims to help communications professionals identify media opportunities, secure earned coverage, and improve visibility across both traditional search ecosystems and AI-powered discovery platforms.

Competition in this space continues to intensify. Public relations teams increasingly use technology from companies such as Salesforce, Microsoft, Google, and Adobe to manage communications workflows, analytics, and audience engagement. Specialized platforms such as Connectively are attempting to occupy a different niche by focusing specifically on earned media and expert sourcing.

For enterprise marketing teams, the significance extends beyond public relations. As brands compete for visibility across search engines, news publications, and AI-generated answers, access to credible expert commentary is becoming an increasingly valuable component of content strategy.

The platform's growth suggests that despite rapid advances in AI-generated content, demand for verified human expertise remains strong. As publishers continue searching for authoritative voices and brands seek greater visibility in increasingly complex information ecosystems, journalist request platforms may play a growing role in connecting expertise with media opportunities.

Market Landscape

The journalist request platform market is evolving as public relations technology converges with AI-driven content discovery and authority-building strategies. Enterprise brands are increasingly investing in earned media programs that support search visibility, thought leadership, and AI discoverability.

According to research from McKinsey & Company, organizations that effectively combine technology, expertise, and content authority often outperform competitors in digital engagement initiatives. Meanwhile, growing adoption of generative AI platforms is creating new demand for trusted expert sources, making journalist request platforms increasingly relevant to modern PR and content marketing strategies.

Top Insights

• Connectively surpassed 100,000 users following its 2026 revival, highlighting renewed demand for digital platforms that connect journalists, publishers, and subject-matter experts.
• The platform facilitates expert-to-publisher connections every six seconds, helping approximately 2,500 publishers source credible, expert-led content at scale.
• Growth reflects broader industry demand for authoritative content as brands seek stronger visibility across search engines, news platforms, and AI-generated answers.
• Featured now operates both Connectively and HARO, providing platform-based and email-based media sourcing workflows for PR professionals and experts.
• The rise of AI-powered PR technology is increasing the value of verified human expertise, creating new opportunities for journalist request platforms and earned media strategies.

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Dunn Pellier Media, a public relations agency focused on health, wellness, fitness, beauty, and lifestyle brands, has received Women's Business Enterprise (WBE) certification from the Women's Business Enterprise National Council (WBENC). The designation formally recognizes the agency as a women-owned business and positions it within a broader supplier diversity ecosystem that connects certified firms with corporations, government agencies, and procurement programs seeking diverse business partners.

Dunn Pellier Media has announced that it has earned Women's Business Enterprise certification through the Women's Business Enterprise National Council (WBENC), a development that strengthens the agency's standing within the public relations and communications industry while opening access to new business and partnership opportunities.

The certification is awarded to organizations that are at least 51% owned, operated, and controlled by women. To obtain the designation, companies undergo a detailed review process that evaluates ownership structures, operational control, and business documentation to ensure compliance with WBENC standards.

Founded by Nicole Dunn, Dunn Pellier Media has built its business around strategic communications services for health, wellness, fitness, beauty, and lifestyle organizations. The agency's work spans media relations, executive thought leadership, brand storytelling, and public relations campaigns designed to increase brand visibility and strengthen consumer trust.

While the announcement is not tied to a new technology launch, it reflects a growing trend across the business services sector where supplier diversity credentials increasingly influence procurement decisions. Large enterprises are expanding initiatives aimed at working with certified women-owned, minority-owned, and diverse suppliers as part of broader environmental, social, and governance (ESG) objectives and corporate responsibility programs.

For marketing and communications agencies, certifications such as WBENC can play a strategic role in business development. Enterprise organizations often maintain supplier diversity programs that actively seek partnerships with certified vendors across marketing, advertising, technology, consulting, and professional services categories. As a result, certification can improve visibility among procurement teams and create access to opportunities that may not otherwise be available.

The development comes at a time when diversity and inclusion continue to influence purchasing decisions across multiple industries. According to research from McKinsey & Company, organizations that prioritize diversity and inclusion often report stronger innovation outcomes and improved business performance. Meanwhile, supplier diversity initiatives remain a key focus area for many Fortune 500 companies seeking to broaden their vendor ecosystems and support economic inclusion.

For agencies serving consumer-facing sectors such as wellness, beauty, and lifestyle, authenticity and representation are becoming increasingly important brand considerations. Consumers are placing greater emphasis on company values, founder stories, and organizational purpose, making strategic storytelling and credible brand positioning critical competitive differentiators.

Dunn Pellier Media's certification may also help strengthen its appeal among emerging wellness and consumer brands looking for communications partners that align with their diversity, inclusion, and purpose-driven business objectives. As competition intensifies across health and wellness markets, brands are increasingly investing in integrated communications strategies that combine earned media, thought leadership, digital marketing, and influencer engagement.

The announcement highlights a broader evolution occurring across the communications industry. Public relations agencies are no longer evaluated solely on media placements or campaign execution. Enterprise clients increasingly assess agency partners based on operational maturity, industry expertise, diversity credentials, and their ability to support long-term business goals.

Technology platforms from companies such as Salesforce, Adobe, Microsoft, and Google have helped modernize marketing and communications workflows, but strategic storytelling remains a critical component of brand growth. Agencies operating in specialized sectors continue to differentiate themselves through industry knowledge, media relationships, and subject matter expertise.

For Dunn Pellier Media, the WBENC designation represents both recognition and potential expansion. By joining the WBENC network, the agency gains access to a community of corporations, government entities, and business leaders focused on supplier diversity and inclusive economic growth.

As brands continue to seek authentic ways to connect with audiences in highly competitive markets, agencies with specialized expertise and recognized business credentials may find themselves increasingly well-positioned to support evolving communications and brand-building initiatives.

Market Landscape

The supplier diversity market continues to gain momentum as enterprises expand efforts to engage certified women-owned businesses. Research from Forrester and Gartner has highlighted the growing importance of inclusive procurement strategies as organizations seek broader innovation networks and more resilient supplier ecosystems.

Within the public relations industry, specialized agencies serving healthcare, wellness, beauty, and lifestyle markets are benefiting from increased demand for authentic storytelling, executive visibility, and purpose-driven brand communications. Certifications such as WBENC provide an additional layer of credibility that can influence procurement decisions and partnership evaluations.

Top Insights

• Dunn Pellier Media earned WBENC certification, formally recognizing the agency as a women-owned business and expanding access to supplier diversity programs and enterprise procurement opportunities.
• The certification validates ownership and operational control requirements, positioning the agency within a national network of corporations and organizations committed to inclusive sourcing.
• Growing supplier diversity initiatives are influencing how enterprises evaluate marketing, communications, and professional services partners across multiple industries.
• Specialized PR agencies serving wellness, beauty, fitness, and lifestyle brands are seeing increased demand for strategic storytelling and credibility-building communications programs.
• The development reflects broader business trends where diversity credentials, operational maturity, and industry expertise increasingly impact vendor selection decisions.

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As hybrid work environments become the norm across industries, IT teams face growing pressure to securely provision and manage devices across distributed workforces. Mobile Device Management (MDM) platforms are increasingly becoming a critical component of enterprise IT infrastructure, enabling organizations to automate onboarding, enforce security policies, and maintain compliance at scale. Against this backdrop, AppTec has highlighted new capabilities within its AppTec360 Mobile Device Management platform aimed at streamlining device provisioning and centralized endpoint management for modern enterprises.

The shift toward hybrid and remote work has fundamentally changed how organizations deploy and manage employee devices. Enterprises today must support users working across offices, homes, and mobile environments while ensuring consistent security controls and seamless access to business applications.

This operational challenge has elevated Mobile Device Management from a niche IT function to a strategic component of enterprise digital workplace initiatives.

AppTec, a Switzerland-based provider of enterprise mobility management solutions, is positioning its AppTec360 Mobile Device Management platform as a centralized solution for device enrollment, configuration, policy enforcement, and application deployment. The platform is designed to help organizations reduce manual provisioning tasks while maintaining governance across increasingly diverse endpoint ecosystems.

At the core of the platform is automated device enrollment.

Traditionally, onboarding new devices required IT administrators to manually configure settings, install applications, and apply security controls. In distributed work environments, this process often creates delays and increases administrative overhead. AppTec360 automates much of this workflow by enabling devices to be enrolled and configured remotely, allowing employees to access corporate resources more quickly after receiving their hardware.

The platform also provides centralized policy management, enabling organizations to apply consistent security settings and operational controls across managed endpoints.

This capability is becoming increasingly important as enterprises navigate evolving cybersecurity risks. According to Gartner, endpoint devices remain one of the most common attack surfaces for enterprise environments, particularly as organizations expand support for remote and hybrid work models. Consistent policy enforcement helps reduce vulnerabilities while ensuring compliance with internal governance requirements and industry regulations.

Remote configuration management is another area gaining attention among IT leaders.

Rather than requiring physical access to devices, administrators can deploy configurations, update settings, and troubleshoot endpoints remotely. For organizations operating across multiple locations or supporting global workforces, remote management significantly reduces support costs and accelerates device readiness.

The platform also addresses software deployment challenges through centralized application management capabilities.

As enterprises continue adopting SaaS applications and cloud-based productivity tools, IT teams must ensure employees have timely access to approved software while maintaining visibility into application usage. AppTec360 enables organizations to distribute and manage business-critical applications from a centralized console, helping standardize user experiences across device fleets.

The broader endpoint management market is evolving rapidly as organizations seek unified approaches to device administration.

Industry leaders such as Microsoft, VMware, IBM, and Cisco continue investing in unified endpoint management (UEM) technologies that combine device management, security, identity, and compliance capabilities.

AppTec's strategy aligns with this broader trend toward centralized endpoint administration.

The company reports that its AppTec360 platform currently supports more than 6,400 organizations across 107 countries. As enterprises increasingly manage smartphones, tablets, laptops, and other connected devices within a single operational framework, centralized management platforms are becoming essential for maintaining operational consistency.

The market opportunity remains significant.

According to IDC, global spending on enterprise mobility and endpoint management technologies continues to grow as organizations prioritize digital workplace modernization, cybersecurity resilience, and workforce productivity. Similarly, Forrester research indicates that hybrid work models are driving sustained demand for cloud-based device management solutions that reduce IT complexity while improving employee experiences.

For enterprise IT leaders, the challenge extends beyond device deployment.

Modern endpoint strategies must balance security, compliance, usability, and operational efficiency. Employees expect frictionless access to applications and resources regardless of location, while organizations must maintain visibility and control over corporate data and infrastructure.

This balancing act has accelerated adoption of automation-driven management platforms that reduce administrative workloads while supporting increasingly complex device ecosystems.

AppTec360's focus on automated provisioning, centralized policy enforcement, remote management, and application deployment reflects the industry's broader move toward scalable endpoint management architectures designed for hybrid work environments.

As organizations continue investing in digital workplace transformation, the ability to securely provision and manage devices at scale is becoming a competitive necessity rather than an operational convenience. Mobile Device Management platforms are increasingly serving as the foundation that enables secure, productive, and flexible work environments across modern enterprises.

Market Landscape

The enterprise Mobile Device Management market is being shaped by several key trends:

• Growth of hybrid and remote work environments.
• Rising demand for unified endpoint management platforms.
• Increased focus on cybersecurity and device compliance.
• Expansion of cloud-based device provisioning and management.
• Greater reliance on automation to reduce IT operational complexity.

According to IDC, endpoint management remains a strategic investment area as organizations modernize workplace infrastructure and support increasingly distributed workforces.

Top Insights

•  AppTec360 enables automated device enrollment, reducing manual configuration efforts and accelerating employee onboarding across distributed workforces.
• The platform centralizes policy enforcement, helping organizations maintain consistent security and compliance standards across managed endpoints.
• Remote configuration capabilities allow IT teams to provision and manage devices without requiring physical access, supporting hybrid workplace operations.
• Centralized application deployment simplifies software distribution while ensuring employees have secure access to business-critical tools.
• Growing demand for endpoint management solutions reflects broader enterprise investments in digital workplace modernization and cybersecurity resilience.

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As enterprises accelerate investments in AI agents, many are encountering a critical challenge: how to scale autonomous systems while maintaining governance, compliance, reliability, and cost control. At PegaWorld 2026, Pegasystems unveiled new agentic AI capabilities designed to address these concerns, including support for the emerging Model Context Protocol (MCP) standard that allows third-party AI agents to securely discover and execute enterprise workflows within the Pega platform.

Article

The enterprise AI market is entering a new phase.

While organizations have spent the past two years experimenting with generative AI assistants and copilots, attention is increasingly shifting toward AI agents capable of independently executing tasks, coordinating workflows, and making operational decisions. These agentic systems promise substantial gains in productivity and automation, but they also introduce new challenges around governance, predictability, compliance, and operational risk.

Pega's latest announcement reflects growing demand for enterprise-grade orchestration platforms capable of managing AI agents at scale.

The company has introduced support for the open Model Context Protocol (MCP), enabling AI agents built on platforms such as OpenAI, Anthropic, Google, and Amazon Web Services to discover and execute workflows running within Pega's business orchestration environment.

The development highlights a broader industry trend toward interoperability in agentic AI systems.

Rather than operating as isolated assistants, modern AI agents increasingly require access to enterprise applications, business processes, customer data, and workflow automation platforms. Model Context Protocol has emerged as one of the key frameworks designed to standardize how AI systems interact with enterprise software environments.

For organizations pursuing large-scale AI adoption, this interoperability is becoming increasingly important.

Many enterprises are deploying multiple AI models, agent frameworks, and automation technologies simultaneously. Without a common orchestration layer, these systems can create fragmented workflows, inconsistent outcomes, and escalating operational complexity.

Pega's strategy centers on positioning business processes as the control mechanism for agent execution.

Traditional agent architectures often require AI systems to repeatedly reason through complex workflows at every decision point. While flexible, this approach can introduce variability in outcomes, increase token consumption, and create governance challenges.

Pega's Business Orchestration and Automation Technology (BOAT) platform takes a different approach by allowing AI agents to execute predefined workflows that guide actions through structured process steps.

The result is intended to provide greater consistency, auditability, and cost predictability for mission-critical business operations.

The launch comes amid growing concerns about the economics of agentic AI.

According to Gartner, more than 40% of agentic AI projects could be canceled before the end of 2027 because of escalating costs, insufficient governance, and unclear business value. As organizations move beyond pilot programs, executives are increasingly demanding measurable outcomes and stronger operational controls before approving broader deployments.

This reality is driving demand for orchestration platforms capable of balancing innovation with enterprise governance requirements.

Beyond MCP support, Pega also introduced new pre-built AI agents aimed at automating common business processes.

One of the new capabilities, the agentic assignment agent, is designed to proactively engage employees or customers when additional information, approvals, or actions are required to complete a workflow. Rather than relying on manual follow-up, the agent can initiate communications through email, chat, or telephony channels to keep processes moving forward.

The company also unveiled a new document agent focused on intelligent document processing.

The solution can analyze, categorize, segment, score, and route documents for downstream workflows while enabling employees to interact with PDFs, images, and other files through conversational interfaces. These capabilities align with a growing enterprise focus on automating document-heavy processes such as claims management, customer onboarding, compliance reviews, and financial operations.

The announcement further strengthens Pega's position in the emerging market for agent orchestration.

Industry analysts increasingly view orchestration as one of the most important layers within enterprise AI architectures. While foundational models generate intelligence, orchestration platforms determine how that intelligence is applied within real business environments.

Major enterprise software providers including Microsoft, Salesforce, ServiceNow, and IBM are similarly investing in orchestration technologies that connect AI agents with business systems and operational workflows.

For enterprise leaders, the key challenge is no longer building AI agents but ensuring those agents operate reliably within regulated, high-stakes environments.

Industries such as banking, insurance, healthcare, telecommunications, and government require strict controls over how decisions are made, how actions are executed, and how outcomes are audited. Agentic systems that cannot meet those requirements are unlikely to achieve large-scale adoption.

Pega's MCP-enabled orchestration model addresses this challenge by placing business processes at the center of AI execution. Instead of allowing agents to independently navigate every task, organizations can define structured pathways that maintain compliance while still benefiting from AI-driven automation.

As enterprises move from AI experimentation to operational deployment, orchestration platforms are emerging as a critical layer for turning autonomous agents into trusted business systems. The organizations that succeed may not be those with the most agents, but those with the strongest ability to govern, coordinate, and scale them effectively.

Market Landscape

The enterprise agentic AI market is evolving rapidly as organizations seek to operationalize autonomous systems while maintaining governance and cost controls. Key trends include:

• Growing adoption of Model Context Protocol (MCP) for AI interoperability.
• Increased investment in AI orchestration platforms.
• Rising demand for enterprise-grade governance and compliance controls.
• Expansion of intelligent document processing and workflow automation.
• Greater focus on predictable AI outcomes and cost management.

Industry analysts predict orchestration and governance technologies will become foundational components of enterprise AI architectures as agent deployments scale.

Top Insights

• Pega has added MCP support, enabling third-party AI agents to discover and execute enterprise workflows.
• The integration supports agents built on platforms including OpenAI, Anthropic, Google Gemini, and AWS ecosystems.
• Pega's orchestration approach aims to improve predictability, auditability, compliance, and cost control.
• New agentic assignment and document-processing agents expand automation capabilities across enterprise workflows.
• Agent orchestration is emerging as a critical layer for scaling AI adoption in regulated and mission-critical environments

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Chief Marketing Officers are increasingly directing marketing budgets toward customer acquisition and digital channels as artificial intelligence transforms campaign execution, measurement, and optimization. According to new research from Gartner, awareness and conversion activities now account for 62.6% of total media spending, highlighting a growing focus on growth-oriented marketing strategies. However, the findings also reveal that successful AI adoption depends as much on talent and operational maturity as it does on technology investment.

Artificial intelligence is rapidly changing how marketing organizations allocate resources, measure performance, and engage customers. As companies seek new growth opportunities in increasingly competitive markets, many marketing leaders are reallocating budgets toward digital channels and customer acquisition initiatives that can be optimized using AI-driven tools and analytics.

New findings from Gartner's 2026 CMO Spend Survey illustrate the scale of this transformation.

The survey, conducted between January and March 2026 among 401 chief marketing officers and senior marketing executives across North America, the United Kingdom, and Europe, found that awareness and conversion activities now account for 62.6% of total media spending. The figure represents a significant increase from 2024 and reflects a broader industry shift toward measurable growth initiatives.

At the same time, investment in customer loyalty and retention programs has declined substantially. Spending on retention-focused marketing has fallen by nearly 29% since 2024 and now represents less than 15% of total media budgets.

The data suggests that many organizations are prioritizing customer acquisition over long-term relationship building as they seek immediate growth opportunities.

This trend coincides with a broader migration toward digital channels.

According to the survey, digital media now represents more than two-thirds of total marketing media investments, marking an 18% increase since 2024. AI is playing a major role in this shift, with marketing leaders citing enhanced personalization capabilities, automation opportunities, and optimization efficiency as key drivers behind channel selection decisions.

As AI-powered tools become more integrated into advertising platforms, marketing teams are increasingly favoring channels where performance can be measured, optimized, and scaled through automated processes.

The trend is evident across major digital ecosystems, including platforms operated by Google, Meta, Microsoft, and Amazon, all of which continue expanding AI-powered campaign management capabilities.

However, Gartner's findings also raise important questions about whether organizations may be over-optimizing for short-term performance.

Interestingly, the research indicates that the most AI-mature marketing organizations allocate a larger portion of their budgets to customer loyalty and retention than their less mature counterparts. These organizations also spend relatively less on digital channels, suggesting a more balanced approach to customer lifecycle management.

This distinction highlights a growing concern among marketing leaders: the risk that AI may unintentionally encourage investment in activities that are easiest to automate and measure while undervaluing initiatives that build long-term customer relationships.

Performance marketing channels often provide immediate visibility into return on investment, making them attractive targets for AI optimization. In contrast, brand-building, loyalty programs, and customer experience initiatives typically generate results over longer time horizons and can be more difficult to quantify.

As a result, organizations that focus exclusively on short-term optimization may risk sacrificing future customer value for near-term efficiency gains.

The survey also challenges a common assumption about AI's impact on workforce costs.

Despite widespread expectations that AI would reduce staffing requirements, labor costs are actually consuming a larger share of marketing budgets.

Labor represented 24.5% of total marketing spending in 2026, up from 21.9% in 2025. Rather than replacing employees, many organizations appear to be investing in new capabilities, specialized expertise, and operational resources needed to effectively deploy AI technologies.

This reflects a broader reality emerging across enterprise AI adoption initiatives.

Technology alone does not create business value. Organizations must also develop the processes, governance structures, and workforce capabilities required to integrate AI into day-to-day operations.

The survey reveals that many marketing departments are still struggling with this transition.

Seventy percent of respondents reported that their internal marketing processes lack the maturity needed to effectively scale AI initiatives. Additionally, only 30% of surveyed organizations described their AI readiness capabilities as mature or fully developed.

Talent shortages remain another significant obstacle.

Nearly four in ten marketing leaders identified a lack of AI expertise and internal skills as the primary barrier preventing them from achieving greater efficiency through AI adoption.

These findings suggest that AI implementation challenges are increasingly organizational rather than technological.

While AI platforms continue advancing rapidly, many enterprises are discovering that successful adoption requires workforce development, operational transformation, and leadership alignment alongside technology investments.

The implications extend beyond marketing departments.

As AI becomes embedded across customer acquisition, analytics, personalization, content creation, and campaign optimization, organizations will need to rethink how teams are structured, how decisions are made, and how performance is measured.

For CMOs, the challenge is no longer whether to invest in AI. The more pressing question is how to balance short-term efficiency gains with long-term customer value while building the capabilities required to sustain competitive advantage.

The organizations that succeed may ultimately be those that view AI not as a replacement for marketing expertise but as a force multiplier for well-developed people, processes, and strategic execution.

Market Landscape

The Gartner findings reflect several major trends reshaping modern marketing organizations:

• Rapid adoption of AI-powered marketing technologies.
• Increased investment in digital advertising and acquisition channels.
• Growing emphasis on measurable marketing performance.
• Rising demand for AI-related marketing skills and expertise.
• Renewed focus on balancing acquisition efficiency with customer lifetime value.

Industry analysts increasingly view operational readiness, governance, and workforce capabilities as critical success factors for enterprise AI adoption.

Top Insights

• Awareness and conversion activities now account for 62.6% of total media spending among surveyed CMOs.
• Digital media represents more than two-thirds of marketing investments, rising 18% since 2024.
• Spending on customer loyalty and retention has declined by 29% since 2024.
• Labor's share of marketing budgets increased from 21.9% in 2025 to 24.5% in 2026.
• Seventy percent of marketing leaders report their organizations are not mature enough to effectively scale AI initiatives.
• Lack of AI expertise remains the leading barrier to achieving AI-driven efficiency gains.

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