Humans and humanoids in harmony at NAB - The Short Stack
Friends,
Greetings from NAB Show in Las Vegas!
The digital media industry is filled with complementary ideas. Take advertising. When programmatic first emerged in display advertising years ago, a lot of media companies feared that by allowing technology to automatically fill ad slots, they were diminishing the value of their media. What they realized in time was that programmatic was actually serving a different need – put simply, to monetize parts of their inventory that direct buys couldn’t get to efficiently. Programmatic and Direct were different ad products that complemented each other to create more comprehensive offerings, help publishers sell more and advertisers reach more consumers.
I was reminded of that when I heard Futuri CEO Daniel Anstandig keynote with a robot at NAB this past week. Presenting findings of a study on the role of AI in media, Anstandig stated that “Listeners believe that AI will assist media in creating more relevant and engaging content.”
That, to me, is the ideal. I’m obviously very pro-innovation – I’m an audio tech CEO! – but in its right place alongside creative, experienced humans. We have yet to see how it all plays out, but ideally, audio publishers will think about leveraging AI like they think about programmatic advertising, that is, as a complement to working closely with people.
The part that AI will never be able to do was on full display at our own happy hour during NAB. Teams from both Live365 and SoundStack met with customers and friends – some for the first time – to talk shop a little, and otherwise just have a lot of fun. Seeing the team interacting with our fantastic partners in person is truly the best, and it was an instant reminder of how it will always be as core to what we offer as the most mind-blowing tech.
If you are interested in joining SoundStack at our next happy hour, let us know at marketing@soundstack.com and we’ll get you on the list for our next gathering! Until then, raise a glass to the best kind of complements.
Sincerely,
Jon Stephenson , CEO 
“Despite inflation fears, interest rates at record highs, and continuing global unrest, the U.S. digital advertising industry continued its growth trajectory in 2023.” Audio platforms — including podcasts, streaming radio, and streaming music — were main drivers of growth, according to the IAB/PwC Internet Advertising Revenue Report for 2023.
As prestige streamers pump out original true crime docuseries, 48 Hours is taking advantage of CBS’ vast network to find sustained success outside linear, expanding into streaming, podcasts and even social media.
