Perion Is So Over The AI Hype Cycle | AdExchanger

"You know, we've been doing AI for 15 years and we called it 'machine learning.' Why didn't we say 'machine learning' 700 times an hour? AI is just another phase of technology."

"Jacobson argues that what really matters isn't how bids get placed, but rather what the system is optimizing toward. The point of AI isn't cheaper impressions or a better cost per acquisition, he says. It's outcomes. That should be the only single truth of everything."

"The manual work [of ad ops] is doomed, but I think manual work for every single occupation is doomed. People need to figure out how to add value [and] how to solve problems."

Perion CEO Tal Jacobson dismisses the current AI hype as rebranding of existing machine learning techniques used in advertising for over a decade. The company, which evolved from an email client to a multichannel advertising platform, is now restructuring around Outmax, an AI media trading agent that allocates budgets across CTV, digital-out-of-home, retail media, YouTube, Meta, and TikTok. Perion acquired Greenbids for $65 million to strengthen AI-powered media optimization capabilities. Jacobson emphasizes that the critical factor is not how bids are placed but what outcomes the system optimizes toward. He predicts manual ad operations work will become obsolete, requiring professionals to develop new value-adding skills.

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