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VivaTech 2018: Publicis makes big bet on AI amid agency headwinds

The dangers of artificial intelligence and its potential replacement of jobs have been widely discussed. Nevertheless, advertising giant Publicis Groupe SA is moving full steam ahead with its automation initiative.

Just one of many large companies investing in machine learning, Publicis unveiled new details about its artificial intelligence-powered enterprise assistant, Marcel. Built with Microsoft Corp.'s AI technology, Marcel is a response to "unprecedented" changes in the media landscape, Publicis Chairman and CEO Arthur Sadoun told conference attendees May 24 at the annual VivaTech conference in Paris.

Publicis' investors are calling for the group to modernize fast, he said, and Publicis is also under pressure from within to encourage more cooperation among its many silos as part of a reorganization. The company's net revenue fell 8.2% to €2.08 billion in the first quarter from €2.27 billion in the same period a year ago. Net revenue declined by 16.4% in Asia-Pacific and was down by 10.4% in North America. In Europe, net revenue was 0.8% lower.

The CEO said Marcel "creates the right connections between our agencies" and "talent to make them better … to change the way we work." Microsoft CEO Satya Nadella personally was involved with shaping the platform, Sadoun said.

The next challenge for Publicis, which is one of the largest global ad agency holding groups, will be to scale its AI assistant. A beta version of Marcel will be released to 1,000 people in June, with 90% of employees to be covered by 2020. Publicis has 80,000 global employees spanning 1,200 entities.

"It's going to be an extremely difficult journey ahead, [but] we know that the future is bright," Sadoun said.

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