Smartly.io Acquires London-based Ad-Lib

Smartly.io, an advertising SaaS platform for creative and performance marketers, announced its acquisition of Ad-Lib.io, the next-generation optimization platform, on Wednesday (Jan 5).

The company said the acquisition will advance Smartly.io’s reach beyond social media to include “dynamic creative optimization across programmatic, CTV and the entire Google ecosystem,” per the release.

“Ad-Lib.io is a clear leader in the creative space by innovating on the mission-critical dimensions of workflow, automation, brand governance, personalization and insight,” said Kristo Ovaska, Smartly’s CEO and co-founder. “Their knowledge of the Google stack is unmatched in the industry and combining that with Smartly.io’s deep understanding of Facebook and the social stack across creative, media and data allows us to now serve customers across all major digital channels.”

The purchase will allow Smartly’s SaaS solution for social advertising to be improved by Ad-Lib’s suite of creative tools, the company said. The deal comes as the sector is experiencing more demand for solutions that unite creativity and communication across all channels.

Ad-Lib, a Google Certified Creative partner, works with 10 of the top 30 global advertisers, the firm said. At the same time, Smartly said it partners with many social media platforms, including Facebook, Instagram, Pinterest, Snapchat and TikTok, and works with more than 700 major advertisers globally.

“With brand marketers and agencies increasingly uniting their social and programmatic teams into integrated digital creative and media investment teams, this is a natural next step for both companies,” said Oli Marlow-Thomas, founder and president of Ad-Lib.

Ad-Lib CEO Adit Abhyankar added, “These teams are currently using multiple technologies or software partners, but going forward they won’t have to. The Smartly.io and Ad-Lib.io solution will provide the connective tissue to maximize creative effectiveness, media buying and creative intelligence.”