Cecilia Dones will be speaking at AdExchanger’s Programmatic IO: Innovate event, taking place in Las Vegas from May 19-21. Click here to learn more and get your ticket.
AI isn’t something a marketer “does.” It’s not a singular action or task.
But AI researcher and consultant Cecilia Dones gets asked all the time by marketers for advice on how to “do AI.”
And so she tries to “get underneath” the reasons behind why they want to integrate AI into their businesses, Dones says on this week’s episode of AdExchanger Talks.
What’s their motivation? What are their KPIs? How will implementing AI – or any technology for that matter – help them with their next opportunity, either inside or outside of their organization?
It’s hard to succeed without knowing the answers to these questions, and navigating the uncertainty of AI can feel daunting enough as it is.
But “we’re all in this together,” says Dones, who began her career on the buy side, including in data science leadership roles at L’Oréal and Moët Hennessy. In 2018, she founded 3 Standard Deviations, a consulting firm and advisory that helps organizations extract value from their data, including through AI.
Artificial intelligence is “a fairly ubiquitous disruptor,” Dones says. “As long as we continue to treat each other with human dignity [and] compassion … I think we’ll find solutions that benefit everyone in the ecosystem. It just takes time.”
By the same token, it’s imperative for the online advertising industry to address the root causes of programmatic’s many scandals before going full bore on AI.
As Dones points out in a piece published on LinkedIn addressing the recent Adalytics report about the monetization of child sexual abuse material: “We cannot champion ethical AI development while allowing it to inadvertently prop up harmful content or perpetuate opaque practices.”
Also in this episode: Changing the problematic incentive structure of programmatic, managing the ethical risks of AI and Dones’ talent for ballroom dancing.
