WPP Chief Technology Officer Stephan Pretorius is a rarity.
He’s one of the few CTOs who never formally studied computer science, software development or engineering.
Everything he knows about technology he learned through a combination of practical application, intuition and osmosis, Pretorius says on this week’s episode of AdExchanger Talks.
But his circuitous route into tech – he very nearly went for a degree in music and he also studied law – has given him a humanistic perspective on technology.
“It has to be people first, not technology first,” says Pretorius, who describes himself as “a skeptical technologist,” by which he means that he’s optimistic about the long-term value of tech, but that doesn’t stop him from asking questions.
“Why” and “how” are a few of his favorites. As in, why is this technology interesting and how will it help enhance people’s lives?
“Technology is interesting as a tool to deliver certain outcomes or help improve our lives or solve problems,” Pretorius says. “But I’m not that interested in technology for its own sake.”
Take the rise of AI and its application to advertising.
The ability to automatically generate multiple versions of ad creative is cool and all, and also efficient from a production point of view. But what’s the point of knowing that “Ad A” performed better than “Ad B” unless you know why?
AI-powered systems should make the humans that use them smarter, Pretorius says.
“There’s a really interesting opportunity that we have right now to build software that actually floats all boats.”
Also in this episode: WPP’s investment in its own “AI-powered marketing operating system,” why “technology doesn’t destroy jobs, it destroys tasks” and dunking on that viral AI-generated Toys“R”Us video ad. (“Unless [technology is] moving us forward, it’s just a gimmick,” Pretorius says.)
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