Latest news with #SanFrancisco‑based
Yahoo
3 days ago
- Business
- Yahoo
Wall Street analysts start bullish on Omada Health on chronic care market growth
-- Barclays, Goldman Sachs, JP Morgan and Morgan Stanley issued bullish rating on Omada Health stock saying the virtual‑care provider could capture more of the large market for diabetes, hypertension and weight‑management services. Barclays began at 'overweight' with a $21 price target, arguing Omada's new GLP‑1 weight‑loss programme should speed adoption of its digital coaching platform. Goldman Sachs started at 'buy' and set the Street‑high target of $29, saying a focus on measured clinical outcomes can help the company outgrow peers. JP Morgan initiated at 'overweight' with a $19 target and projected roughly 24% compound annual revenue growth through 2027 as Omada expands its corporate client base. Morgan Stanley also rated the stock 'overweight' and set a $25 target, citing scope for margin gains as artificial‑intelligence tools automate parts of the service. The brokerages see Omada tapping a U.S. population in which more than 150 million people live with at least one chronic condition. Several analysts said last year's introduction of an integrated care track for users of GLP‑1 weight‑loss drugs, and recent partnerships with pharmacy‑benefit giants CVS Caremark and Express Scripts, should widen the company's reach. San Francisco‑based Omada raised $158 million in its Nasdaq debut on June 6, pricing shares at $19. The stock has since traded below that level but is up roughly 20% from its low. Analysts said Omada's move toward break‑even, targeted for the second half of 2026 or 2027 depending on the forecast, gives management flexibility to invest in new products while trimming debt. The company was valued at about $1.4 billion, or just under three times projected 2026 revenue, a discount to digital‑health peers, the broker notes said. Related articles Wall Street analysts start bullish on Omada Health on chronic care market growth UBS hires Morgan Stanley's Taylor Henricks to head M&A in Americas INmune slides again as Scotiabank, RJ cut ratings after Alzheimer's drug miss
Arabian Post
25-06-2025
- Business
- Arabian Post
San Francisco Ad Tech Firms Shape Next‑Gen Digital Marketing
A wave of San Francisco‑based ad tech companies is spearheading a shift in digital marketing, harnessing AI, automation and privacy‑first solutions to transform advertising. Demandbase, Marin Software, Metric Theory, Segment, AdRoll, AdEspresso, Liftoff+Vungle and Quantcast are emerging as key players influencing how brands reach audiences at scale. Demandbase, founded in 2007, has cemented its status as a leader in account‑based marketing for B2B enterprises. Its platform offers data‑driven DSP capabilities and AI‑powered insights that identify and engage high‑value accounts. Recognition on G2's 2024 Best Marketing & Advertising Software list—claiming 42 Leader badges including top spots in 11 categories—underscores its market influence. The company's annual 'State of B2B Advertising' report outlines industry trends such as AI‑driven automation, cross‑channel campaigns, and privacy‑forward advertising, signalling the direction of future strategies. Marin Software, established in 2006, offers a unified platform for managing search, social and e‑commerce advertising. Its machine learning tools optimise budget allocations across channels. With over US $40 billion in managed ad spend, it remains a cornerstone for performance‑driven advertisers. ADVERTISEMENT Since its 2012 founding, Metric Theory—now a part of in performance marketing for B2B, direct‑to‑consumer, and e‑commerce brands. It combines analytics, paid social, shopping ads, and conversion optimisation to guide advertisers toward data‑based ad decisions. Segment, another 2012 startup, functions as customer data infrastructure, enabling companies to consolidate first‑party data and activate it across marketing and analytics tools. It offers unified APIs designed to enhance user insights and support data‑informed decisions. operating since 2013, automates social ad creative and execution for brands worldwide. Its platform is credited with generating thousands of ad variants automatically, enabling real‑time testing and scaling while reducing manual overhead. AdRoll, spun off NextRoll in 2007, provides marketers with a suite of data‑driven solutions to understand, acquire and re‑engage buyers through APIs and proprietary technology. AdEspresso, founded in 2012, offers a user‑friendly Facebook advertising optimisation tool. It allows marketers to conduct detailed split‑tests, track conversions and refine targeting to boost campaign results. On the mobile front, Liftoff and Vungle apply machine learning to maximise post‑install conversions. The combined platform identifies optimal audience overlaps, while filtering out fraudulent installs. Quantcast, incorporated in 2006 and headquartered in San Francisco, provides AI‑powered real‑time advertising and audience measurement. It achieved Media Rating Council accreditation for its traffic measurement and now caters to global markets with a cookieless solution deployed in 2021. These companies collectively illustrate a convergence of technological innovation and strategic insight. A burgeoning focus on privacy—highlighted in Demandbase's report—reflects growing regulatory pressures and a shift away from reliance on third‑party cookies. Simultaneously, AI‑driven optimisation across channels such as Connected TV and programmatic display advertising is reshaping campaign performance and efficiency. Smaller firms like Marin, Metric Theory and AdEspresso emphasise specialised performance and optimisation techniques suited for advertisers seeking granular control. Larger platforms demand deep integrations across marketing stacks, while mobile‑centric solutions from Liftoff+Vungle illustrate the ongoing importance of user acquisition in app ecosystems. Quantcast's expansion into cookieless audience measurement further signals the industry's commitment to privacy compliance and future‑proof tracking. Key personnel driving these efforts include Demandbase's CMO Kelly Hopping, championing account‑based strategies, and Quantcast's CEO Konrad Feldman, overseeing global growth and privacy innovations. Looking ahead, the ad tech sector in San Francisco is set to deepen its alignment with AI‑centred analytics and automated campaign orchestration. Firms are anticipating stricter privacy measures, growing demand for cross‑channel attribution and fragmentation of ad spend across emerging platforms. Partnerships between DSPs, CDPs and analytics providers are likely to strengthen, while smaller and niche players innovate with creative formats and audience segments. Emerging trends include influencer marketing in B2B—now seen as vital for driving authority—and automated creative testing that scales personalised content delivery. As regulatory frameworks evolve, platforms emphasising data transparency and consent management are expected to gain traction. Investor activity remains robust, with private investment fueling scalability among mobile‑focused ad techs and martech integrations. Firms securing funding rounds are those offering measurable ROI, privacy compliance, and seamless integration across enterprise systems.
Arabian Post
25-06-2025
- Business
- Arabian Post
Stealth AI Lab Thinking Machines Snaps Up $2 Billion
A six-month-old San Francisco‑based venture, Thinking Machines Lab, has secured a staggering $2 billion seed round, propelling its valuation to at least $10 billion. Led by Andreessen Horowitz with participation from Conviction Partners and reportedly the government of Albania, this marks one of the largest initial funding rounds in Silicon Valley history. Founded in February 2025 by former OpenAI chief technology officer Mira Murati, the company has assembled a formidable team of around 30 engineers and researchers. This group notably includes OpenAI co‑founder and chief scientist John Schulman, former OpenAI head of special projects Jonathan Lachman, Barret Zoph, Alec Radford, Bob McGrew and veterans from Meta and Mistral. Murati, whose leadership was central to ChatGPT, DALL‑E and OpenAI's voice initiatives, holds a deciding vote on the board, giving her outsized control over strategic decisions. The round demands minimum commitments of $50 million per investor, reflecting intense belief in AI and trust in Murati's leadership. Though the startup has yet to announce a product, generate revenue or share a public roadmap, investor enthusiasm remains undimmed. Some insiders suggest the lab is focussed on developing general‑purpose or agent‑based AI systems that are more interpretable and customisable than current offerings. ADVERTISEMENT Operating under a cloak of secrecy, Thinking Machines emphasises safety and openness in AI research, potentially contributing to open‑source safety frameworks—a stance that aligns with growing industry concerns regarding AI governance. The ambitious raise occurs amid a surge in funding for AI labs led by former OpenAI executives; Ilya Sutskever's Safe Superintelligence secured $1 billion earlier this year at a $32 billion valuation. Meta reportedly pursued acquisition talks with Thinking Machines, alongside other AI startups like Perplexity and Safe Superintelligence, though discussions fell through owing to valuation differences. This reflects larger strategic moves among technology giants to bring leading AI talent in-house amid a wave of new AI ventures. Investors appear undeterred by the absence of tangible outputs. Analysts attribute this to the so‑called 'power law' of venture investing—putting large sums into a few outlier founders poised to deliver transformative impact. Moreover, with the high‑stakes environment, acquisitions by large tech firms, even without public products, are viewed as viable returns on investment. Thinking Machines Lab embodies the latest phase of AI innovation: elite teams, vast funding, and a focus on building next‑gen AI systems in stealth. The coming months will be crucial as they translate financial firepower and technical pedigree into breakthrough capabilities capable of influencing the competitive dynamics between OpenAI, Anthropic, nearly every tech giant, and emerging labs.
New Indian Express
11-06-2025
- Business
- New Indian Express
Meta to invest $15 billion in Scale AI in a bid to achieve computerised ‘superintelligence'
Meta is preparing to unveil a $15 billion investment to pursue computerised 'superintelligence', an AI capable of outperforming humans across all tasks, by securing a 49 percent stake in Scale AI, according to The Gaurdian. This move marks one of Meta's largest external investments to date, as CEO Mark Zuckerberg assembles a 50‑member team to pioneer an advanced AI initiative dubbed 'superintelligence,' alongside Scale's founder and CEO, Alexandr Wang. Scale AI, founded in 2016 by Alexandr Wang and Lucy Guo, is a San Francisco‑based leader in AI data labelling. In 2025, the company is projected to double its revenues, rising from roughly $870 million in 2024 to about $2 billion this year, with an anticipated valuation nearing $25 billion, Reuters reported. Superintelligence is described as a type of AI that can perform better than humans at all tasks. Currently AI cannot reach the same level as humans in all tasks, a state known as artificial general intelligence (AGI). Recent studies have shown that many mainstream systems collapse when presented with highly complex puzzles. This initiative comes as Meta looks to rebound from recent setbacks, such as the underperformance of its LLaMA 4 models, delays in its flagship 'Behemoth' AI, and the fading momentum of the Metaverse, amid escalating competition from OpenAI, Google, Anthropic, and Microsoft Meta's bold strategy has sparked renewed calls in Europe for transparent, publicly‑funded AI research programs, mirroring institutions like CERN to ensure accountability, fairness, and public trust in this rapidly accelerating technological race .
