Chai break with raghavendra agarwala, cto & co-founder, torcai
- How do you think AI and ML are transforming the media and advertising landscape?
The amount of data that is required to gain ROI for marketing is astonishing. There is simply no way we can manage to deal with so much data. AI and ML are the only to allocate resources and do media buy and sell.
- Do you think advertisers are making full use of available technologies to improve ROI?
Unfortunately, most of the advertisers look at marketing from a short-term ROI perspective. Few have ventured into data and technology. When you continue to look at a goal from ROI perspective, the risk-taking appetite to explore technologies decrease.
Some of them, that I know of, in BFSI, media and retail have begun to invest in technologies and their CTOs have taken up the mandate to include the ad-tech stack into the core biz-tech stack.
So, in all there is a lot of scope to work in this space.
- What do you think will be the long-term impact of GDPR on the data supply chain?
In long run, the user privacy concerns will go down considerably. Publishers would become consent gate keepers and high-quality data would be available in a much more structured way.
- What are the key disruptors that businesses should take note of?
World wide data privacy frameworks will change a lot things people do in ad landscape. The privacy frameworks also make it mandatory to have data sharing framework b/w controllers. Such regulations will break the monopoly of data that is enjoyed by G/FB. This will open a lot of possibilities for data biz-based investments in this zone, in turn bringing a lot of innovation thereafter. Secondly, AI & ML are today in reach of only few. Newer biz formats will enable AI/ML to reach masses giving them clearing ground to compete with bigger players. Most of the transparency and discrepancy issues can be resolved by some or other flavour of blockchain. These three things will make heads spin for few years to come.
- What is the role of the CTO in TORC AI?
TorcAI is a very unique entity. We engage with our clients at CXO levels and they look at us to drive one of the most complex biz and tech strategy that an organization could have. Our IP is designs and patterns that we learn and discover. We look at tech as enabler and are not bound by it. Its like, when you want to play the master tune you need to become master of the piano, then forget what you have learned and then play the tune. Only then can a master piece be achieved. For us, our clients want us to deliver a master piece for them.
As a CTO, I need to stay in tune with architectural designs for high performance; algorithms that become building block and constantly contemplate on tech & biz models that our clients should pick. TorcAI is a team work and tech master piece need team of mavericks. End of the day, I have a lot of fun working on complex deliveries along with my team.
- What advice would you give your 21-year-old self?
A lot of things, let's say top three are:
- Listen to everyone and everything. Use what you hear and think about it. Usually the important things, you don't it the first time. Make sure you have understood before you decide to use or let go.
- Have patience, its not about high speed or slow speed, it's about controlled speed
- Have faith in yourself and constantly evaluate yourself and your team critically
We'd also require a high-res picture of yours, along with a short bio of 7-8 lines. Look forward to hearing from you.
I'm one of the lucky guys who has got to work with excellent projects and people. With over 20+ work years exp in systems, media, telco etc. I have gained various perspectives
