Justin Inman, founder and CEO of Emberos, is entrenched in the world of influencing what AI says about brands. He shares why responsible optimization — not gaming the system — may determine which brands thrive in the next era of AI-driven discovery. Plus, why marketers need to think about authority, structure, and narrative consistency and how AI visibility may predict real-world business outcomes like box office revenue.

For further reading:

AI Visibility Startup Emberos Raises $1.2M in Pre-Seed Funding: https://www.adweek.com/media/emberos-ai-justin-inman-funding/

Beyond The Slop: Why AI Brand Visibility Depends On Signal, Not Volume: https://www.forbes.com/councils/forbesbusinesscouncil/2026/03/31/beyond-the-slop-why-ai-brand-visibility-depends-on-signal-not-volume/

Listen on your favorite podcast app: https://pod.link/1715735755

Alex Sherman, CEO of Bluefish, says brands need to start treating AI like a true marketing channel, not just another variation of SEO. As consumers shift from search engines to answer engines like ChatGPT, Google Gemini, and Microsoft Copilot, Sherman explains why it’s no longer enough to simply “show up”—brands need to control how they’re represented, what data models learn from, and how they influence AI-generated recommendations.

He breaks down how Bluefish works with major brands to close the growing “content gap,” optimize for machine-readable data, and measure performance across new AI KPIs like visibility, favorability, and influence. Plus: why the marketing funnel isn’t dead but accelerating, how companies are moving from playing defense to offense in AI, and what the rise of agentic commerce could mean for the future of paid media.

For further reading:

Marketing in the Age of AI Answers: https://www.adexchanger.com/adexchanger-talks/marketing-in-the-age-of-ai-answers/

This startup knows what AI is saying about your brand: https://www.fastcompany.com/91387950/this-startup-helps-big-brands-look-good-to-ai

Listen on your favorite podcast app: https://pod.link/1715735755

Brian Stempeck, CEO and cofounder at Evertune AI, says brands need to get smart about how they’re showing up across the major LLMs, from ChatGPT to Claude and Gemini and beyond - and a small sample isn’t enough to build a plan. He explains how Evertune samples AI platforms to help brands better strategize across channels, plus new tactics they’re experimenting with like retargeting users after they’ve searched for products with AI.

For further reading:

Meet Evertune, A Gen-AI Analytics Startup Founded By Trade Desk Vets: https://www.adexchanger.com/marketers/meet-evertune-a-gen-ai-startup-founded-by-trade-desk-vets/

Evertune is building marketing analytics tools for LLMs: https://www.businessinsider.com/pitch-deck-ai-ad-analytics-startup-evertune-4-million-seed-2024-10

The Prompt: SEO Is Dead. What Comes Next?: https://www.forbes.com/sites/rashishrivastava/2025/08/12/the-prompt-seo-is-dead-what-comes-next/

Listen on your favorite podcast app: https://pod.link/1715735755