Investment round led by Volpe Capital marks company’s official entrance into U.S. market, expansion of AI platform for retail and e-commerce businesses

Connectly, the leader in conversational commerce, today announced its $7.85 million Series A investment led by Volpe Capital, with participation from RX Ventures and Saurabh Gupta, managing partner of DST Global. This brings the total amount the company has raised to $17.25 million. Founded by industry veterans from Facebook, Google, Uber, and NASA, and backed by Unusual Ventures, Connectly uses proprietary artificial intelligence (AI) models to automate how businesses communicate with their customers and sell their products. Already, Connectly’s personalized AI-generated marketing campaigns have generated upwards of 30x returns for its customers.

In our digital-first world, retaining consumers’ attention and mindshare is becoming more difficult by the day. Businesses need a simple way to have impactful conversations with customers while more effectively creating personalized, one-on-one relationships. They must deliver the right message to the right person at the right time - and on the right platform.

Connectly provides a simple plug-and-play solution for businesses to create winning messaging campaigns and automate two-way conversations - to both leads and loyal customers - at scale and across any messaging platform.

“This investment marks a critical milestone in Connectly’s journey,” said Stefanos Loukakos, co-founder and CEO, Connectly. “Not only does it provide us the opportunity to expand our platform and continue developing state-of-the-art AI models, but it also marks our entrance into the U.S. market. What’s more, this funding round will aid our expansion onto new messaging platforms and further our position as a leader in conversational AI. This is just the beginning of an exciting new chapter for us.”

At the heart of Connectly’s platform is Sofia AI, an AI sales assistant that connects seamlessly with businesses’ backend platforms. Sofia AI can:

• Tailor suggestions powered by AI, ensuring customers discover products they'll love.
• Engage and assist customers wherever they are - on Instagram, WhatsApp, SMS or webchat.
• Leverage those insights to gain a deeper understanding of your customers.

“We believe in the transformative power of artificial intelligence to enhance customer interactions. Connectly’s innovative approach to AI-powered conversational commerce truly sets them apart in the market,” said Gabriel Marcassa, Partner, Volpe Capital. “The impact reaped by its customers across diverse industries is as substantial as the market opportunity that lies ahead. We are thrilled to support Connectly as they expand their presence in Latin America and enter into new markets.”

“Connectly is uniquely poised to become a transformative force in retail and e-commerce industries around the world,” said Analu Partel, head of New Business at Lojas Renner, the largest fashion retailer in Brazil. “RX Ventures intimately understands what modern brands need to succeed today as consumer shopping behaviors evolve. Winning brands will be those that can meet customers where they are - and today that is increasingly on messaging platforms. Using Connectly, brands can have personalized, automated conversations that will dramatically reshape the fundamentals of commerce.”

Ad spending in retail media, paid search and paid social grew from Q2 to Q3, with every channel seeing its strongest spending month of 2023 during the third quarter, according to Skai's Quarterly Trends Report.

Today, Skai, a leading omnichannel platform for performance marketing, published its Q3 2023 Digital Marketing Quarterly Trends Report, an in-depth analysis of the digital marketing trends that defined the second quarter of this year, along with an interactive infographic detailing key analysis. Spending levels in 2023 have risen nearly every quarter in every channel of the analysis, driving year-over-year (YoY) spending higher in some cases.

Strong sequential spending growth across channels
Quarter-over-quarter (QoQ) spending grew 10% for retail media, 3% in paid search and 27% in paid social. Spending in Q3 also exceeded that of the first quarter of 2023 in each of these channels.

Increasing consumer demand and higher prices drive YTD growth
Since Q1, retail media CPC is up 14%, paid search CPC has increased 18% and paid social CPM rose 8%. These increases in ad prices are a key factor in understanding spending growth throughout 2023 and are likely to continue through the end of the year as the holiday season builds on increasing consumer confidence, competition between advertisers and relatively low prices in 2022.

Healthy overall outlook for ad spending
Year-over-year (YoY) spending accelerated from +3% to +5% in paid search, while retail media extended its run of robust growth rates at +34%. Short-term growth and increased spending in key segments reinforced the consensus opinion of a rebound in paid social advertising, even as YoY spending growth of -3% in the channel was a clear outlier to the overall market trend.

Social spending grows up the funnel
There is a clear split in our data between growth rates of social campaigns based on program objectives. Upper-funnel tactics like branding and awareness increased spending by 13%, and mid-funnel objectives like post engagement were up 12%. These segments are shown to be heavier users of video ads and Reels placements.

Other QoQ and YoY findings include:

"So far 2023 has been remarkably consistent in that advertisers are continuing to grow spending in the key walled garden publishers from month to month and from quarter to quarter. In Q3, it looks like the positive spending trends in retail media and paid search earlier in the year spilled fully into paid social," said Chris Costello, Senior Director of Marketing Research at Skai. "In particular, when we look at commerce advertising through a more omnichannel lens–which is to say one that is inclusive of relevant publishers beyond just retailers–social spending seems to have fully flipped the switch going into the second half and the holiday period once the growth in those other channels was fully recognized."

Brands are well equipped to close out the year and prepare for 2024, with technology advancements that connect them with the modern consumer across digital and social channels

Emplifi, a leading unified customer engagement platform, announced its Fall ‘23 product innovations for the holiday season and in advance of brands assessing commerce technology for the upcoming year. Enhancements include influencer marketing power workflows, advancements in user generated content, and ratings and reviews for social proof that enable brands to connect with, convert, and care for the modern consumer across digital and social channels.

“We continue to take bold strides to unify marketing, commerce, and care,” said Emplifi CTO Todd McCaslin. “We are excited to unveil our groundbreaking influencer power workflows and analytics, backed by Emplifi’s vast database of 35 million influencers. It's more than just offering tools – it is about reshaping the way brands connect with the modern consumer in this dynamic digital landscape.”

End-to-end influencer workflows

Emplifi Influencers is a marketing platform that provides control and insights over influencer marketing campaigns, from the discovery stage to performance analysis. Recent new features include:

• Leveraging Emplifi’s GDPR-compliant database of 35 million influencers to build brand awareness and reach the right audience. The CRM database for influencers helps to establish and maintain lasting relationships and value-driven partnerships.
• AI-powered influencer analysis to scale campaigns, better enabling brands to understand individual influencer performance.
• Integrated campaign management with influencer ranking, internal notes, and custom validation stages for faster approvals.
• Powerful reporting to measure engagement, clicks, and direct sales at every stage, as well as calculating ROI to double down on effective campaigns.

Unified and enterprise-grade UGC features

Robust user-generated content for commerce has long boasted more sources to increase engagement, drive eCommerce and allow brands to connect with greater authenticity.

Emplifi UGC connects a brand’s library of approved ready-to-use UGC content with AI Composer and Emplifi Publisher, which frees up time for teams to strategize and focus on campaigns. Uploader enhancements provide brands AI-powered suggestions from their product catalog, and on-site collections such as crowdsourced product tagging add flexibility and improve time-to-value.

“Creators are the new ‘publishers’ in your media plan,” said Kelsey Chickering, Forrester Senior Analyst. “Creator marketing is a discipline that requires a centralized strategy that connects with other owned, earned, and paid channels.”

“The creator economy is more important than ever for brands trying to stand out in a competitive marketplace, scale operations, and improve time-to-value,” adds McCaslin. “Emplifi’s tools help brands increase authenticity by leveraging the voice of their consumers. Our clients have seen a 4x increase in UGC engagement and a 19% increase in conversions. It's about genuine connections, amplified engagement, and tapping into a vast library of brand-ready user-generated content.”

Social Care expands advanced case routing is a game-changer for agents

Emplifi Care helps brands address customer concerns on Facebook, Instagram, LinkedIn, TikTok, and X (formerly known as Twitter). New product features improve agent efficiency and boost customer experience, including:

• Real-time notifications to keep agents and supervisors informed of impending SLA breaches, promoting proactive action and accountability.
• Streamlined permissioning and adaptive case assignments to leverage each team’s unique skills, workloads, and availability to enhance overall performance.
• Advanced automation and intelligent case routing that trigger multiple actions with a single click, or field updates to eliminate repetitive tasks.
• Agile sentiment adjustments based on case outcomes for more accurate customer support analysis.
• Enhanced CSAT integrated insights that improve service quality by leveraging real-time Emplifi Voice of the Customer data.

Seamless escalation between marketing and customer service teams

Marketing and customer service teams can work within one unified platform. This gives both teams visibility of the conversation, activity, and case status, while removing silos, improving service and reducing case handling times.

Marketing teams can escalate messages to the service team directly from Emplifi Community and Emplifi Care into Emplfi Agent.

Emplifi Agent is used by customer service teams that need complete case management, advanced workflow, and built-in fulfillment capabilities. Recent enhancements include:

• Simplified maintenance of key features, including the ability to tailor screen layouts based on the specific needs of the organization.
• Integration with enterprise identity management services via System for Cross-domain Identity Management (SCIM).
• Improvements to reporting that “normalizes” customer feedback based on product/location history, allowing product quality and field service teams to identify and focus on top performers or potential resolution areas.
• Emplifi Knowledge, the foundation for knowledge management workflows with Emplifi Agent, has also been updated to display tailored responses without having to switch screens, change apps, or refer to binders. As well as live collaborative editing and internal commenting amongst teams, the new update includes version control for responses and proofreading across 27 languages.

“We made a commitment earlier this year for revolutionary advancements that give brands the necessary tools to engage with the modern consumer, and we’re proud of what we’ve delivered – particularly in time for when businesses will be assessing their commerce technology for the year ahead,” concludes McCaslin.

Banuba, a leading provider of computer vision and augmented reality technologies, has announced major improvements to its white label video editing solution. The updates include an updated user interface (UI) that is more convenient for users and developers who customize it, as well as streamlined integration of the video editor with other software.

“The new UI design features a modern look that is both intuitive and easy to use. It allows users to quickly and easily navigate through the various features and tools available in the video editor,” Anton Liskevich, Chief Product Officer and co-founder of Banuba said.

Developers and designers who customize the UI will appreciate the improved flexibility and ease of use, making it easier to adjust screens to the style and specific needs of their clients.

In addition to the new UI design, Banuba has also added a number of elements that streamline integration of the video editor with other software.

Banuba offers a white label video editing solution, as well as a video editing SDK or an API, depending on the customer needs. The API version is more flexible, sacrificing certain features and UI elements but allowing deeper customization. However, all three options let developers save time and money by getting a video editor as a ready-made package, instead of writing it all from scratch.

Banuba’s video editor is commonly used in:

• Dedicated photo/video editing apps
• Social media
• Marketing software
• eCommerce
• Educational apps
• Lifestyle apps
• etc.

It is compatible with native Android and iOS, as well as React Native and Flutter.

Overall, the new updates to Banuba's white label video editing solution represent a significant improvement in both functionality and usability. With its modern UI design and streamlined integration options, this video editing SDK or API is sure to be a valuable tool for developers and users alike.

Primis, the leading Video Discovery platform for global publishers and founders of Sellers.guide, announced the launch of a brand new feature on Sellers.guide's Analysis Page, Edit Mode. This new element to the free automated ads.txt management tool will allow publishers to edit their ads.txt file directly on the domain analysis results page. From there, the newly edited file can simply be downloaded and implemented as is.

The Edit Mode will assist publishers by showing them the lines that have errors or need to be removed, so they can see their Sellers.guide Transparency Score increase in real-time and protect their revenue from hidden or misrepresented sellers. This new feature complements additional ads.txt editing and management tools on the Sellers.guide site, such as the Wizard, launched in January 2022. The Wizard is designed to overhaul ads.txt files from start to finish, while Edit Mode can address more specific issues on a categorical basis. Ultimately the addition of this feature to the Analysis Page furthers Sellers.guide's mission of streamlining the ads.txt management process for all publishers and creating more transparency in the ad tech supply chain.

"Our team is constantly in communication with our publisher partners so we can better understand their pain points and come up with solutions to address these complexities," explained Lior Shvo, Managing Director of Sellers.guide. "We want publishers to know that gaining control over their inventory does not need to be a daunting task. The Edit Mode is a new integrated ads.txt maintenance tool that empowers publishers to own their files."

Best-in-class identity security delivers the fast, frictionless, and precise user experience that secures digital ecosystems from fraud and ensures they “Know Who’s Behind the Device”

authID Inc., a leading provider of secure identity verification and authentication solutions, today announced the launch of Verified™ 3.8, its next-generation platform that protects digital enterprises and the entire user journey against identity fraud, credential compromise, and account takeover.

Data breaches occur because enterprises merely assume they know ‘who’ is accessing applications with a continued reliance on age-old passwords, pin codes, and secret questions, leaving those enterprises highly susceptible to rampant phishing schemes. authID's patented biometric identity platform counters these attacks by helping digital enterprises ‘Know Who’s Behind the Device’, with the highest levels of security, and without impacting user convenience.

The Verified 3.8 release fortifies our document-based identity verification solution for new customer onboarding by adding layers of additional fraudulent document detection. We also refined our user interface for both document and selfie capture and delivered easy to use self-service onboarding workflows for our workforce customers. authID authenticates the identity of the true account owner every time with the ease of a quick selfie captured and validated in sub-second speed.

authID is at the forefront of accuracy and speed. Our ability to perform backend processing of biometric identity verification in 700 milliseconds far outshines our competition who at best offer speeds of 4 to 9 seconds, as tested by customers. Said differently, authID’s platform delivers identity trust at rates  5 to 10 times faster than our best competition.

“The continued innovation of the authID next-generation identity platform delivers the fast, frictionless, and precise user identity authentication demanded by today’s digital ecosystem,” said Rhon Daguro CEO of authID. “authID is committed to ensuring enterprises ‘Know Who’s Behind the Device’, while delivering an easy, frictionless user experience. Our next generation, biometric authentication quickly and accurately verifies a user’s identity, eliminates assumptions of ‘who’ is behind a device, and prevents cybercriminals from infiltrating accounts and seizing assets.”

With this latest release, our product, engineering, and development teams also prioritized efforts to deliver maximum platform uptime and availability, improve accuracy and speed, and increase first-pass transaction success rates. To meet market and customer demands for additional product features to our identity platform, authID has added new technical talent, with the appointment of Aris Green, as Senior Staff Engineer. Mr. Green brings twenty plus years of software development experience using Open Source and Microsoft technologies deploying on Linux and Windows. His compensation package includes basic salary and a grant of options to purchase 15,000 shares of new Common Stock at a price of $6.13 per share, pursuant to Nasdaq Rule 5635(c)(4).

Acquia showcases customer success with keynotes from leading brands, including Fidelity Investments, Mars, and New Balance, as well as AI and accessibility specialists

Acquia, the digital experience leader, brings its signature event, Acquia Engage, to Boston on November 14 and 15. Designed for digital innovators, Acquia Engage Boston features keynotes, sessions, and workshops, with a focus on AI and product innovations that deliver strong return on investment.

This year’s two-day agenda includes detailed guidance and thought-provoking presentations for marketers, web designers and developers, IT operations teams, and practitioners. The focus of the event is to offer practical advice and use cases with keynotes and workshops including:

• Haben Girma, the first deafblind graduate of Harvard Law School and disability rights advocate, on why making technology accessible and inclusive benefits all users
• Paul Roetzer, the founder and CEO of the Marketing AI Institute, on how marketing and business leaders should approach artificial intelligence and make what they have learned actionable
• Marketing Leaders Summit, hosted by Jennifer Griffin Smith, Acquia Chief Market Officer, and Jill Grozalsky Roberson, Velir VP of Digital Marketing, and moderated by Paul Roetzer of the Marketing AI Institute
• Executive panels featuring digital innovators from brands including Mars, Fidelity Investments, Rhode Island School of Design, New Balance, and more
• Dries Buytaert, creator of Drupal and Co-Founder, Chief Technology Officer, and Chief Strategy Officer of Acquia, along with Deanna Ballew, SVP of Product, will present an Acquia Innovation Showcase
• Jon Meck, Bounteous SVP of Marketing, on three horizons of AI in digital marketing
• Pat Gilbert, Senior Director of Strategic Alliances at TA Digital, on AI-powered content generation and personalization
• Justin Emond, the CEO and Founder of Third and Grove, on AI in action
• Adam Borden, VP of Digital Marketing at Live! Casino & Hotel, on brand management

“Acquia Engage is for those who are rewriting the rules of digital engagement and thinking differently about how customers experience their brands,” said Jennifer Griffin Smith, Chief Market Officer, Acquia. “Attendees will leave with a wealth of practical knowledge and inspiration for how to drive competitive advantage and bottom line results through highly effective, personalized digital experiences and digital marketing efforts.”

At the end of the first day’s sessions, the 2023 Acquia Engage Award winners will be announced, showcasing organizations who have gone above and beyond to deliver the world’s most ambitious digital experiences.

Acquia thanks our Engage Boston sponsors:

• Platinum: Bounteous
• Diamond: TA Digital
• Gold: AWS, Brightcove, EPAM, Phase2, SearchStax, and Third and Grove
• Silver: CI&T, Elevated Third, FFW, Genuine, KPMG Customer Advisory, Material+, Moovly, Smartling, and Velir
• Exhibitor: Altudo, Axelerant, Hounder, and Tactis

Crumbl Cookies joins top AI creators including Heather Cooper, Tatiana Tsiguleva, Nicolas Neubert,
and Ben Myhre to re-imagine brand marketing using AI

Forum3, a technology company that builds experiences for brands and consumers using emerging technologies, is announcing the launch of Hive3, a new platform that connects brands with generative AI creators to deliver innovative marketing assets. Hive3 mobilizes a passionate community of creators and runs competitions to reimagine brand marketing and uncover future possibilities using AI.

Hive3 has been operating in beta mode since July 2023. To date, the platform has hosted 10 community-driven challenges, during which AI creators have competed to deliver the best creative work—from solar sneaks to a futuristic take on outdoor apparel—winning cash prizes and rewards from their favorite brands.

"The new digital transformation playbook starts with brands understanding how to use AI, and the Forum3 team is uniquely positioned to guide brands as they navigate this technology, often for the first time," said Adam Brotman, co-CEO of Forum3 and former Chief Digital Officer of Starbucks. "We look forward to partnering with forward-thinking brands like Crumbl Cookies to generate new types of creative output, activate a community of customers, and elevate brand marketing using AI."

To kick off Hive3's public launch, Crumbl Cookies, the fastest-growing dessert chain in the nation that drops new cookie flavors weekly through their rotating menu, will be tapping the Hive3 community to create a new, AI-powered twist on its advertising campaigns.

"Crumbl Cookies has always sought to bring novel and creative ideas to our customers, from specialty flavors to our iconic pink packaging," said Mai Pham, EVP of Growth at Crumbl Cookies. "The next frontier of marketing innovation is generative AI, and we look forward to being the first brand to partner with Hive3 on a challenge where top AI creators will leverage their skills to create an exciting new ad campaign for our brand."

Early creators that have signed on as Hive3 Ambassadors include Heather Cooper, Tatiana Tsiguleva, Nicolas Neubert, and Ben Myhre. These influential creators will play an active role in contributing to the Hive3 community through tutorials, events, judging, and participating in co-branded competitions. This will enable brands to leverage the power of top AI creative talent to ideate their marketing initiatives in entirely new ways.

"Hive3 is built around competitions because we believe that will attract the very best creative AI talent to our community," said Andy Sack, co-CEO of Forum3. "The top AI creators will be the ones to inspire and educate brands and community members about what is possible in the fast-evolving landscape of AI, and Hive3 will be the platform where it all comes together."

Hive3 is now officially accepting briefs from marketers that wish to up-level their creative game, explore AI technology in a safe environment, and win over customers with marketing that stands out from the rest. The platform is also open to AI creators who want to compete for cash prizes, as well as enthusiasts looking to follow their favorite brands and talent.

"Platforms like Hive3 give creators the opportunity to use new skills with generative AI technology to produce full projects with different tool stacks that mimic real-world activities with a competitive spirit," said Heather Cooper, AI educator and creator, and Hive3 brand ambassador. "I'm excited to join Hive3 as a brand ambassador, and I look forward to helping more creators advance their skills using generative AI."

"Given the rapid development of generative AI tools, it's evident that this revolution will not only introduce new job titles like Model Training Art Director, AI Art Director, and Fine-tuning Specialist, but also elevate existing professions and create new professional opportunities," said Tatiana Tsiguleva, Hive3 brand ambassador. "Platforms like Hive3, which support AI enthusiasts through paid competitions, opportunities, and education, are essential as the new job market is just beginning to take shape."