Full-Time
Senior Engineering Manager
Ad Performance Recommendation
Smartly.io
1,001-5,000 employees
Automates social ads across platforms
No salary listed
Berlin, Germany
Hybrid
Three days on-site per week required.
Master's, PhD
 Engineering Management (1) |
|---|
Get referred to Smartly.io
See people who can refer or advise you
- At least 7 years of experience building services and products.
- At least 5 years of experience applying machine learning to real-life problems.
- At least 3 years of experience leading teams.
- Competence with PyTorch, TensorFlow, Python, and SQL.
- Experience delivering scalable machine learning systems in production, including hands-on code reviews and pair programming.
- Ability to mentor, coach, and develop data scientists and machine learning engineers.
- Ability to drive technical excellence and cross-functional collaboration.
- Understanding of security and compliance requirements when working with personal data.
- An M.Sc. or Ph.D. in a relevant field such as Mathematics, Computer Science, Artificial Intelligence, or Physics.
- Ability to communicate effectively in written and spoken English.
- Ability to work three days per week at the office.
- Lead and grow the Ad Performance Recommendation team by providing technical direction, strategic vision, and hands-on leadership.
- Drive development of AdTech-specific machine learning models and foundational artificial intelligence capabilities, including predictive and simulation techniques.
- Optimize existing models for performance, efficiency, and scalability.
- Collaborate cross-functionally to ensure AI-driven features deliver measurable business and customer impact.
- Ensure compliance with privacy, security, and ethical artificial intelligence standards in machine learning applications.
- Foster an engineering culture focused on innovation, quality, and continuous improvement.
- Mentor team members through coaching, one-to-ones, and career development plans.
- Remove obstacles so the team can thrive and deliver results.
- Partner with recruiting to scale the team by sourcing and closing talent.
- Partner with AI Platform leaders to shape Smartly’s long-term artificial intelligence strategy and architecture.
- Curiosity and a drive to continuously learn through study and experimentation on the job.
Smartly.io automates social media advertising for brands by handling media buying, creative production, and performance optimization across platforms like Facebook and Instagram. It combines software that automates campaign tasks with a managed services team that provides expert guidance to help brands scale efficiently and profitably. Its Creative Services unit designs, produces, and continually tests ad creatives to improve engagement and return on ad spend (ROAS). The goal is to help brands adapt to changing social media behavior and achieve scalable, profitable advertising across multiple platforms.
Company Size
1,001-5,000
Company Stage
Acquired
Total Funding
$2.8M
Headquarters
Helsinki, Finland
Founded
2013
Get referred to Smartly.io
See people who can refer or advise you
Simplify's Take
What believers are saying
- Smartly completed INCRMNTAL acquisition on May 7, 2026, adding causal incrementality measurement.
- ADVANCE returns September 29, 2026, signaling strong demand from 750-plus senior marketers.
- Revelio Labs showed roughly 970 employees in March 2026, while hiring remained active.
What critics are saying
- Meta, Google, TikTok, and OpenAI can copy Smartly's automation and squeeze pricing by 2027.
- Conversational ads and always-on measurement face privacy scrutiny after OpenAI's ad rollout and INCRMNTAL's data-free model.
- Platform dependence is existential: if OpenAI, Meta, or Roku internalize orchestration, Smartly loses distribution.
What makes Smartly.io unique
- Smartly unifies creative, media, and intelligence, now strengthened by Synapse on June 22, 2026.
- OpenAI named Smartly its first creative adtech partner on April 1, 2026.
- Smartly linked social performance tooling to Roku CTV, extending workflows beyond Meta and TikTok.
Help us improve and share your feedback! Did you find this helpful?
Benefits
Unlimited Paid Time Off
Paid Holidays
Paid Sick Leave
Health Insurance
Mental Health Support
401(k) Retirement Plan
401(k) Company Match
Company Equity
Life Insurance
Disability Insurance
Growth & Insights and Company News
6 month growth
↓ -1%1 year growth
↓ -1%2 year growth
↓ -2%Smartly's ADVANCE returns to New York Sept. 29 at Spring Studios. * 1 hr ago Smartly's flagship event, ADVANCE, returns to New York City on Sept. 29, 2026, at Spring Studios. The event will bring together more than 750 senior marketing and advertising leaders from brands, agencies and leading technology platforms. As AI reshapes how brands are built and consumers discover products, creativity, media, and intelligence are becoming one connected system. ADVANCE will explore what this shift means for marketers, their teams, and the next generation of brand and business growth. The agenda features leaders from across the marketing ecosystem, including Accenture Song, DoorDash, Google, Horizon Media, Meta, NBCUniversal, The New York Times, Pinterest, Reddit, TikTok, WPP, Wpromote and YouTube, alongside opening remarks from Smartly CEO Laura Desmond. Additional speakers and special guests will be announced in the coming weeks. Closing the day, NBA Champion and New York Knicks forward Josh Hart will join Smartly CEO Laura Desmond in conversation alongside Matthew Hillman, CEO of PATH Talent. Together, Hart and Hillman co-host The Roommates Show, one of sports' fastest-growing podcasts. Drawing on their experience building loyal communities on and off the court, they'll explore what it takes to create authentic cultural relevance, build enduring brands and turn defining moments into lasting impact. "As access to AI becomes universal, competitive advantage shifts somewhere new," said Laura Desmond, CEO of Smartly. "It will belong to the companies and marketing leaders who turn abundant data into intelligence that compounds. Making every decision, campaign, creative asset, and every outcome better than the last. ADVANCE is where the conversation takes place, where the connections are made, and where marketers uncover their competitive advantage in the intelligence era." Complementing the mainstage program, ADVANCE features two tracks: Creative AI and Commerce AI. The Creative AI track explores how brands can build enduring creative systems in the age of AI, while the Commerce AI track explores how marketers are driving growth through cross-channel orchestration, measurement and responsible automation. Across both tracks, conversations will explore the evolving role of marketing teams, platform strategy, trust, authenticity and the practical application of AI. ADVANCE is made possible with support from partners including Google, LinkedIn, Pinterest, Roku, Snapchat and TikTok, whose collaboration helps shape programming and experiences throughout the event. Registration is now open. Qualified attendees from brands and advertising organizations may be eligible for complimentary admission. About Smartly Smartly is the AI-powered advertising technology company ranked as the leader in The Forrester Wave(TM): Creative Advertising Technologies. Its platform unifies creative and media to produce intelligent creative, dynamic, data-driven image and video assets optimized for seamless activation across channels. Brands manage, optimize, and scale high-performance campaigns in one place, achieving PwC-validated results, including a 5.5x return on ad spend (ROAS) and 42 minutes saved every hour. True North Radio Network support 800+ brands and manage over $7 billion in ad spend globally. With strategic partnerships across major media platforms, including Amazon, Google, Meta, Pinterest, Reddit, Snap, Spotify, and TikTok, True North Radio Network help Fortune 500 companies deliver relevant advertising at speed and scale. Backed by deep media expertise and best-in-class customer support, True North Radio Network empower brands to maximize performance and drive real business outcomes. Visit Smartly.io to learn more. Media gallery
Smartly's ADVANCE returns to New York Sept. 29 at Spring Studios. Smartly's flagship event will convene more than 750 senior leaders from brands, agencies and technology platforms to explore how AI, creative, commerce and intelligence are converging to reshape modern marketing NEW YORK - August 6, 2026 - Smartly's flagship event, ADVANCE, returns to New York City on Sept. 29, 2026, at Spring Studios. The event will bring together more than 750 senior marketing and advertising leaders from brands, agencies and leading technology platforms. As AI reshapes how brands are built and consumers discover products, creativity, media, and intelligence are becoming one connected system. ADVANCE will explore what this shift means for marketers, their teams, and the next generation of brand and business growth. The agenda features leaders from across the marketing ecosystem, including Accenture Song, DoorDash, Google, Horizon Media, Meta, NBCUniversal, The New York Times, Pinterest, Reddit, TikTok, WPP, Wpromote and YouTube, alongside opening remarks from Smartly CEO Laura Desmond. Additional speakers and special guests will be announced in the coming weeks. Closing the day, NBA Champion and New York Knicks forward Josh Hart will join Smartly CEO Laura Desmond in conversation alongside Matthew Hillman, CEO of PATH Talent. Together, Hart and Hillman co-host The Roommates Show, one of sports' fastest-growing podcasts. Drawing on their experience building loyal communities on and off the court, they'll explore what it takes to create authentic cultural relevance, build enduring brands and turn defining moments into lasting impact. "As access to AI becomes universal, competitive advantage shifts somewhere new," said Laura Desmond, CEO of Smartly. "It will belong to the companies and marketing leaders who turn abundant data into intelligence that compounds. Making every decision, campaign, creative asset, and every outcome better than the last. ADVANCE is where the conversation takes place, where the connections are made, and where marketers uncover their competitive advantage in the intelligence era." Complementing the mainstage program, ADVANCE features two tracks: Creative AI and Commerce AI. The Creative AI track explores how brands can build enduring creative systems in the age of AI, while the Commerce AI track explores how marketers are driving growth through cross-channel orchestration, measurement and responsible automation. Across both tracks, conversations will explore the evolving role of marketing teams, platform strategy, trust, authenticity and the practical application of AI. ADVANCE is made possible with support from partners including Google, LinkedIn, Pinterest, Roku, Snapchat and TikTok, whose collaboration helps shape programming and experiences throughout the event. Registration is now open. Qualified attendees from brands and advertising organizations may be eligible for complimentary admission. About Smartly Smartly is the AI-powered advertising technology company ranked as the leader in The Forrester Wave(TM): Creative Advertising Technologies. Its platform unifies creative and media to produce intelligent creative, dynamic, data-driven image and video assets optimized for seamless activation across channels. Brands manage, optimize, and scale high-performance campaigns in one place, achieving PwC-validated results, including a 5.5x return on ad spend (ROAS) and 42 minutes saved every hour. Smartly support 800+ brands and manage over $7 billion in ad spend globally. With strategic partnerships across major media platforms, including Amazon, Google, Meta, Pinterest, Reddit, Snap, Spotify, and TikTok, Smartly help Fortune 500 companies deliver relevant advertising at speed and scale. Backed by deep media expertise and best-in-class customer support, Smartly empower brands to maximize performance and drive real business outcomes. Visit Smartly.io to learn more. Media Contact Joseph J. Nuñez Senior Director, Global Communications Get in touch. Have a question? Reach out to its communications team. Joseph Nuñez [email protected] [email protected]
Beyond StackAdapt: the growing ecosystem around ChatGPT ads. StackAdapt's leaked playbook offers a glimpse into how ads for ChatGPT might work, but it's just one piece of a much larger and rapidly evolving ecosystem. ChatGPT ads crossed $100M in annualized revenue within six weeks of launch, with 600+ active advertisers. OpenAI is not building this advertising channel alone - it is building a network of DSPs, agencies, brands and adtech platforms to scale monetization fast. The first Wave of adtech partners. StackAdapt may be the most visible partner at the moment, but they are not the only one. The confirmed technology partner roster includes Adobe, Criteo, Kargo, Pacvue, and StackAdapt.Criteo is among the first adtech partners to be confirmed as part of ChatGPT's advertising pilot integration, helping connect brands to conversational ad placements. Smartly is partnering with OpenAI to create interactive, conversational ad formats, ads that operate more like chatbots than banners. This suggests a clear strategy: "OpenAI is not reinventing the wheel, but rather tapping into the existing programmatic ecosystem. Agencies and holding companies are already in. The major holding networks secured early access before the channel matured - activating clients across retail, travel, and CPG with structured testing frameworks and budget mandates. This is how every major digital channel has scaled: * Agencies test early * Show Return on Investment * then unlock the broader brand adoption The brands testing out ads on ChatGPT. The types of brands that are part of early pilots are very telling. They tend to be premium, intent-driven, and utility-focused. Some of the favorite names are: * Target: finding products based on what users ask for * Adobe is pushing AI tools like Firefly. * Getting people to sign up and find new content * HelloFresh is a meal planning solution. HelloFresh CMO framed it as moving from a "search and click" world to an "ask and converse" world * Williams-Sonoma sells home and kitchen goods. These aren't ads that make you want to buy right away. They are brands that gain from: Journeys based on research * Purchases that need a lot of thought * Recommendations based on context * That fits perfectly with ChatGPT's "decision layer" position. A shift in media power: from platforms to interfaces. What makes this moment interesting is how it changes the way people compete. ChatGPT isn't just competing with one channel; it overlaps with a few: * Search (intent capture, which Google has always been good at) * Social (discovery, with Meta in charge) * Retail media (conversion, mostly Amazon) ChatGPT makes a new kind of media surface by combining conversation, intent, and personalization. This is a place where: * Language, not cookies, drives targeting. * Creative becomes flexible and dynamic * Ads can change into things you can do. The emerging format wars: Static vs conversational ads. Not everyone agrees on how ChatGPT ads should look. There are already two directions that are competing with each other: 1. Native, Static Placements (Right Now) * Paid listings in answers * Matching based on prompts in context * Like search ads, but part of a conversation 2. Ads that talk to you (Next Wave) * Smartly and other players are in charge. * Ads that respond, ask questions, and guide decisions * Basically, ChatGPT has branded AI agents. This second model could change advertising in a big way, from how messages are sent to how people interact with them. Not everyone is on board. It's worth noting that not all AI companies are advertising For instance, as OpenAI launched ads, Anthropic was simultaneously running Super Bowl ads positioning itself as the ad-free alternative - a genuine strategic fork worth noting without editorializing. This shows a main conflict in the area: * Making money vs. being neutral * Personalization versus privacy * Usefulness vs. making money What this means for the media landscape. The fact that more than one media player is involved means that this is more than just the launch of one ad product. It means that: * AI interfaces are turning into full-fledged media channels. * Programmatic pipes will reach into places where people talk to each other. * Agencies and DSPs will fight to "own" AI demand. Conclusion: StackAdapt's playbook may have shown the "how," but the bigger picture shows the "who," and it's a who's who of the advertising world. As more people, from DSPs to holding companies to global brands, get involved, ChatGPT is quickly changing from an experimental ad surface into something much bigger: A new media channel that is made for AI and has its own rules, formats, and power dynamics.
Smartly introduces Smartly Synapse, the intelligent AI orchestration layer powering its advertising platform. Smartly Synapse powers Smartly's agentic orchestration, providing marketers a faster, more intelligent way to plan, execute, and optimize millions of signals for better results NEW YORK - Smartly today introduced Smartly Synapse, the intelligent AI orchestration and memory layer behind every Smartly AI Agent. Built on years of cross-channel creative, media and performance intelligence and...
Smartly has introduced Smartly Synapse, an AI orchestration and memory layer powering its advertising platform. The system transforms campaign data, business context and user input into coordinated marketing actions across channels. Built on cross-channel creative, media and performance intelligence, Smartly Synapse creates a continuous performance loop where marketer intent, business context, campaign activity and outcomes inform one another. The shared intelligence layer learns from every campaign to improve future recommendations and execution. The technology synthesises company context, user behaviour, market trends and performance data to provide Smartly's AI agents with the context needed for planning, execution and optimisation. Smartly supports over 800 brands and manages more than $7 billion in ad spend globally, with partnerships across major platforms including Meta, Google and TikTok.