inPowered AI, the leading sell-side AI decisioning company, today announced an exclusive partnership with Kantar, the world’s leading AI-native marketing data and analytics business, to enable true brand lift optimization in programmatic advertising through AI PMPs (Private Marketplace deals) running via Index Marketplaces.
For the first time, advertisers can move beyond optimizing toward proxy metrics like viewability or CTR. Through this partnership, inPowered AI and Kantar make it possible to train and activate custom AI algorithms for each brand using that brand’s own Kantar-measured brand lift data through their LIFT solution — enabling campaigns to optimize toward real outcomes such as awareness, favorability, and purchase intent.
Using Kantar’s trusted brand lift insights as training data, inPowered AI’s proprietary Sell-Side Decisioning models are deployed directly within Index Exchange’s containerized infrastructure. These models learn which environments, audiences, and moments most strongly correlate with positive brand lift results, and then make impression-level decisions in real time to maximize brand impact.
“Advertisers have always measured brand lift, but they’ve never been able to optimize to it — until now,” said Pirouz Nilforoush, Co-Founder and President of inPowered AI. “By combining Kantar’s LIFT gold-standard outcome data with our on-exchange AI platform on Index Exchange, we can build custom algorithms for each brand trained on its own Kantar brand lift data — finally bringing true brand lift optimization to programmatic.”
Each participating brand will have a dedicated AI model trained on its proprietary Kantar brand lift study data, ensuring that the optimization logic reflects the brand’s unique creative, audience, and contextual performance drivers. These brand-specific AI PMPs dynamically curate in real-time impressions most likely to increase brand lift, rather than relying on indirect proxies.
“A common challenge we solve for our clients is how to supercharge new customer growth, with brand building playing a critical role,” said Ben Kahan, Head of Programmatic, North America, Brainlabs. “At Brainlabs, we apply a test-and-learn approach to understand which objectives and creatives truly drive brand building. Being able to directly optimize media toward Kantar-measured brand lift — awareness, favorability, and consideration — is a step forward in how we deliver outcomes for our clients. We’re thrilled to be a launch partner for this solution and excited to help lead the shift away from proxy-based optimization toward truly outcome-driven media buying.”
“This partnership allows us to take Kantar’s LIFT measurement beyond reporting and into real-time optimization,” said Gregory Friend, SVP, Head of Media Product, Kantar North America, Kantar. “By pairing our outcome data with inPowered AI’s decisioning models, advertisers can now leverage custom algorithms powered by their own Kantar LIFT results — creating a true closed loop between measurement and activation.”
The partnership is now live via Index Marketplaces. AI PMPs trained on Kantar LIFT data are available for activation by agencies and brands through their existing buying platforms.
