How Does AI Make Advertising More Engaging? Rohan Castelino Explains Context To A Teenager
Last year, I got a chance to learn about IRIS.TV from Field Garthwaite, the company’s founder, but I was still curious. So, I was thrilled when the offer to interview Rohan Castelino from the same company was presented. Rohan is the CMO of IRIS.TV, and he knows how to explain something as interesting as his company.
He walked me through the company but his main piece of advice was to “stay updated on all the latest advances in AI” and to “get OpenAI, ChatGPT, and just try prompting it.” I decided to take that advice and see what ChatGPT had to say about this interview. I fed it the transcript and asked a few questions, and so check them out after watching this video. (BTW, I would never do this with homework due to academic integrity and I don’t think robots can capture what I think but this is a fun exercise).
What is IRIS.TV? (ROBOT SAYS)
IRIS.TV is a content data platform that allows advertisers to target viewers contextually based on the content they are watching. Through its contextual data marketplace, IRIS.TV enables artificial intelligence (AI) technologies, such as computer vision and natural language processing, to analyze video content frame by frame to understand its context, including the sight, sound, and motion.
For instance, if a brand knows its target audience is young males interested in sports, anime, or video games, IRIS.TV's platform can help ensure that their ads are shown during relevant content that this audience is likely to watch. This approach enhances the relevance and effectiveness of advertising by ensuring that viewers see ads that are more aligned with the content they are currently enjoying, rather than random or unrelated ads.
In essence, IRIS.TV provides the infrastructure and tools for AI companies to access, organize, and analyze video content, facilitating more accurate and contextually relevant advertising.
What is Rohan's piece of advice? (ROBOT SAYS)
Rohan Castelino's advice for people who want to pursue the field of AI and contextual advertising includes the following points:
Stay Updated on AI Advances: Keep abreast of the latest developments in artificial intelligence, as the field is constantly evolving.
Learn the Terminology: Gain literacy in the new terminology and concepts related to AI and contextual advertising.
Practical Experience: Use tools like OpenAI and ChatGPT to experiment with prompts and applications. Hands-on experience is invaluable and helps build practical knowledge.
Jump Right In: Don’t just rely on academic knowledge. Engage with the technology directly to get a real feel for it. Practical experimentation often provides deeper insights than theoretical study alone.
Continuous Learning: Given the rapid pace of change in the field, continuously build your experience and stay adaptable to new advancements and methodologies.
His overall message emphasizes the importance of both theoretical understanding and practical application in mastering AI and contextual advertising.
TRANSCRIPT: (ALSO DONE BY ROBOTS)
Rio Damata: Hi, what's your name and what do you do?
Rohan Castelino: I'm Rohan Castelino, the CMO of IRIS.TV.
Rio Damata: And what is IRIS.TV?
Rohan Castelino: IRIS.TV is a content data platform. We make it possible for advertisers to target contextually based on what you're watching. For example, if you're a brand like Carl's Jr. and you know that your customers are young, hungry males on a budget, and you know a little bit about them—maybe they're into sports, anime, or video games—you can target them when they're watching that exact content using contextual intelligence enabled by AI.
Rio Damata: So what is contextual intelligence?
Rohan Castelino: It's basically when you use tools like AI to analyze each video frame by frame and really understand what it's about—the sight, the sound, and the motion. By identifying objects within it, you can create data segments that you can now target. In the same way, you can target demographics or other types of data sets; now you can target exactly what the show is about. It's a really good way to align with the mindset of someone who's watching. Unlike when we're on our phones or laptops with specific objectives, when we're curled up on the couch in the evening, the last thing we want is to see the wrong ad at the wrong time. We make it possible to actually enjoy the ads that you see.
Rio Damata: So it's kind of like a specialized ad thing where you watch content?
Rohan Castelino: Yeah, you're watching the regular shows you watch, and usually, there's an ad break. Instead of something completely unrelated like a personal injury lawyer or a 60-second pharmaceutical ad, now if you're watching something like "Yellowstone," it might be an ad for Carhartt—something more aligned with the tone and feeling of the show itself.
Rio Damata: So it's not targeting the user, but the show?
Rohan Castelino: Exactly. It's targeting you when you're watching the stuff you love, rather than just targeting you and hoping you're watching the show. Maybe it's you, maybe it's your dad, or maybe it's your friend. Your phone is tied to you, but that TV on the wall could be watched by anybody in the house.
Rio Damata: That's really interesting. How does AI impact this?
Rohan Castelino: What IRIS.TV does is enable AI companies to access those shows and movies. We take that data, organize it, and help companies analyze that information to create their own data segments. They'll use computer vision, natural language processing, and other AI tools to watch the show like you and I would but then create standardized data segments that you can target.
Rio Damata: And finally, what is your advice to people who want to pursue this field?
Rohan Castelino: Absolutely. I think it's important to stay updated on all the latest advances in AI and get some literacy on the new terminology. But ultimately, get OpenAI, ChatGPT, and just try prompting it. A lot of knowledge is built from just doing. You can read as many books as possible and get all the information, but there's an academic coldness to it. Jumping right in is the best way to get a feel for it. It's constantly moving and evolving, so you can build experience and take it from there.
Rio Damata: Thank you very much!
Rohan Castelino: Thank you!
