Omnicom, a prominent advertising holding company, has announced a new partnership with Google, granting them exclusive access to Google Cloud's generative AI tools. This collaboration will enable Omnicom to integrate the advanced Vertex AI platform into its tech stack and leverage the power of the large language model PaLM 2 and image-generating model Imagen, which was introduced in May.
Paolo Yuvienco, Omnicom's chief technology officer, expressed excitement about the potential of generative AI, stating, "We like to think of gen AI as giving our people superpowers, and models like Google's Imagen will allow them to generate and customize personalized experiences at scale for our client's customers." Omnicom aims to explore the various applications of these tools across its operations and creative processes.
Of particular interest to Omnicom is Imagen, which the company plans to integrate into its operating system and data platform, Omni. Jonathan Nelson, chief executive at Omnicom Digital, stated, "We're especially excited to see how Imagen will unlock greater inspiration for our people and elevate the ideas created for clients." By combining Imagen with Omni's audience intelligence and campaign workflow features, over 17,000 Omni users will be able to create customized images in minutes, while also measuring their impact.
Omnicom's commitment to AI innovation is evident in its ongoing investment in the Omni platform. Recently, the company unveiled Omni 3.0 at Cannes Lions, introducing enhancements to its proprietary generative AI tool, Omni Assist, and the newly-unveiled Omni Commerce platform. Notably, Omni Assist was born out of a partnership with Microsoft, which granted Omnicom first-mover enterprise access to OpenAI platforms integrated within Microsoft Azure Cognitive Services.
Aside from its AI advancements, the Omni platform continues to strengthen through partnerships with clients and industry players. At Cannes Lions, Omnicom Media Group and Uber Advertising announced a new collaboration centered around data capabilities. This partnership will leverage Uber's delivery and mobility data to serve targeted ads for Omnicom's clients, demonstrating the platform's expanding reach and capabilities.
Despite their previous collaboration with Microsoft on AI initiatives, Google Cloud expressed support for the Omnicom partnership. June Yang, vice-president of cloud AI and industry solutions at Google Cloud, said, "Our partnership with Omnicom deepens this commitment as it allows marketers to create studio-grade images with mask-free editing for any business need, in a platform where they are already familiar, with only a few typing prompts."
This partnership further solidifies the existing collaboration between Google and Omnicom, as evidenced by Omnicom's early involvement with Google's Ads Data Hub. With special access to Google's Imagen and other advanced AI tools, Omnicom is poised to unlock new possibilities in creative advertising and deliver enhanced outcomes for its clients.
