On the TechTO stage ×2
Aran Hamilton of Vantage Analytics presents Data, Insight, Action
Watch on YouTube ↗Aran Hamilton of Vantage presents How AI is Changing the Path to Purchase
Watch on YouTube ↗First seen on the TechTO stage in 2015. Every talk is searchable — ask the archive about Aran ↗
In their words
Our whole philosophy is it's not about the data, it's not even about the insight you can pull out the data. It's about what you can do with it and the action that you'll take with it.
They said, 'That's awesome, that's exactly what we want — but we don't want it for 5 years. So can you go away for 5 years and then come back?' And obviously I just couldn't sit around for 5 years.
We're seeing that retailers and brands that leverage AI can actually get around a 15 X return on their ad spend, because they're actually able to optimize this in real time using the data in a way that humans just can't do.
Around the web ×3
Quick answers
What is Aran Hamilton known for?
Co-founding Vantage in Toronto in 2013 with Brandon Kane and building it from an analytics dashboard for Shopify merchants into a retail media platform used by enterprise retailers. Earlier he helped launch Canada's first mobile wallet and was founding president of the Digital ID and Authentication Council of Canada.
What does Aran Hamilton do now?
He is co-founder and CEO of Vantage, which sells retail media orchestration software to enterprise retailers including The Home Depot. He also chairs IdentityNorth, a Canadian digital economy conference.
How did Vantage start?
Hamilton pitched Canadian retailers a tablet app to counter showrooming; they told him they wanted it, but not for five years. He started Vantage instead in 2013 with data scientist Brandon Kane, demoed on the Startup Train, and raised $1.1M a year later.
How many times has Aran Hamilton spoken at TechTO?
Twice — 'Data, Insight, Action' in June 2015, and 'How AI is Changing the Path to Purchase' in October 2018.