Snap Inc and Dentsu have announced the launch of ‘Catalyst,’ a unique partnership in the UK designed to enhance Dentsu’s creative capabilities in artificial intelligence (AI), augmented reality (AR), and performance advertising.
On top of being good news for Dentsu’s clients, the move also represents a wider trend of interesting partnerships built upon AI technology.
The partnership aims to provide clients with enhanced access to Snap's expertise and proprietary technology, alongside Dentsu's capabilities in AI and AR within media creative.
Apparently, ‘Catalyst’ will be able to precisely quantify the impact of AR campaigns and provide marketers with more in-depth insights into this technology, so that they can make more informed decisions down the line.
Snap’s creative strategy experts will also run bespoke Client Immersion Sessions and dedicated consultations.
Dilshan Swaris, Managing Director, Strategic Partnerships UK&I, Dentsu, said: “Our shared commitment to empowering brands to build communities, make connections, and leverage the creator economy has huge potential to drive brand growth. We're pioneering new and distinctive opportunities for clients to have genuine social influence. Snapchat's reputation for creative possibilities, especially through AR, is well-established and its role in driving bottom-line results is increasingly recognised by brands."
David Norris, European Head of Creative Strategy, Snap Inc, added: "We’re excited about the launch of Catalyst, and to work even closer with the team at dentsu. The ambition here is to accelerate the understanding of our technology to enable greater creativity and impact on their clients, and we can't wait to get started.”
The future of partnerships?
It seems that we’re entering an era of intriguing partnerships. Wall Street Journal, Reddit, and Dotdash Meredith have all struck deals with OpenAI; and now we’re seeing social platforms partner with performance marketing agencies to innovate personalised client solutions.
The common denominator here? AI.
We’re getting familiar with how AI is shaking up the work that partnership marketers do in their day-to-day, but how it will start to rewire the actual partnerships themselves is an emerging revelation.
It’s also fascinating to see social media explicitly bleeding into the performance realm here, leasing out its technology for marketers' use. As social platforms seek to generate more revenue, amidst a rocky climate of bans and such, we may see this kind of activity become more prevalent.
