What Brandtech Ventures does

The Brandtech Group (formerly You & Mr Jones), founded in June 2015 in New York by former Havas Global CEO David Jones, is a global marketing technology group that builds, acquires, and operates technology-driven marketing businesses for the world's largest advertisers. The company works with 8 of the top 10 and 60 of the top 100 global advertisers across 37 countries, organized around a portfolio of operating companies: Pencil (generative AI marketing platform), Oliver (in-housing model for client-embedded digital marketing teams), Jellyfish (digital and performance marketing with Share of Model LLM brand-perception tracking), Acorn-i (AI-driven e-commerce technology), Collectively (influencer/creator economy), Mobkoi (mobile marketing), Gravity Road (content and creative), 55 (data analytics, founded by former Google Southern Europe management), DP6 (LatAm data science), Mofilm (10,000+ filmmaker community), and Brandtech Consulting (strategic innovation).

The company's flagship technology is Pencil, the world's #1 generative AI marketing platform, which has produced more than 5 million ads across 5,000+ brands with over $2.65 billion in media spend flowing through it to power performance prediction. Pencil aggregates leading foundation models (Google AI, OpenAI, Adobe Firefly, Runway, StabilityAI) into an end-to-end workflow spanning consumer insights, persona generation, creative asset production (text, image, video), publishing to major ad platforms (TikTok, Instagram, YouTube, Facebook, Google), and creative optimization. Proprietary IP includes Pencil Pro (enterprise version with data ring-fencing, IP protection, and brand safety), Bias Breaker (ethical AI bias mitigation across age, race, ability, gender identity, religion), Share of Model (LLM brand-perception tracking from Jellyfish), and a Gen AI Carbon Calculator built with Scope3. Integrations with Adobe Firefly Services (December 2024) and a global strategic partnership with BCG (May 2025) extend the technology into enterprise transformation workflows.

Brandtech generates revenue through five primary streams: (1) Pencil SaaS subscriptions including multi-year enterprise contracts for Pencil Pro; (2) Oliver in-housing professional services contracts; (3) Jellyfish digital and performance marketing services; (4) Acorn-i Ignite e-commerce SaaS and services with approximately 100 clients across five continents; and (5) Collectively/Mofilm creator and influencer services. GTM is direct enterprise field sales led by regional managing partners in the UK, North America, and France, complemented by Pencil Pro demo bookings on the company website and sole-source partnerships with WFA and ANA for 2026. Reported revenue exceeded $500 million in 2021 with 50%+ organic growth, and the company reached a $4 billion valuation following a $115 million raise in March 2024. Cumulative disclosed funding totals approximately $575 million across rounds in December 2019 ($200M), January 2021 ($260M), and March 2024 ($115M).

Name

Brandtech Ventures

Legal name

The Brandtech Group LLC

Website

https://thebrandtechgroup.com

Company type

Private

Founded year

2015

Operating status

Operating

Headcount range

51–100 employees

Short description

The Brandtech Group, founded in 2015, is a global marketing technology group whose flagship Pencil is the world's #1 generative AI marketing platform. It serves 8 of the top 10 global advertisers across 37 countries through a portfolio including Oliver, Jellyfish, and Acorn-i.

Ownership category

akta.pro rank

Product category

Venture Capital / Corporate Investment Arm

NAICS

All Other Financial Investment Activities (52399), Management of Companies and Enterprises (551)

SIC

Investment Advice (6282)

akta.pro primary industry

Corporate Strategic Partnership & Ecosystem Investment Arms (FSANAHAF)

akta.pro secondary industry

Sector-Focused Venture Capital (Vertical Specialists) (FSANAAAD)

Keywords

• Venture capital investing
• Marketing technology investments
• Adtech venture capital
• Martech startup investments
• Creator economy investing

Headquarters

HQ city

New York

HQ country

United States

HQ region

North America

Offices33 records

Markets served

GTM type

B2B

Offering type

Services

Cost components

Personnel, Operations, Marketing or Sales, Technology or R&D, Others

Revenue model

1. Pencil SaaS Platform: Pencil operates as a generative AI marketing SaaS platform. Pencil Pro is specifically designed for enterprise-level brands offering enhanced brand safety, data ring-fencing, IP ownership, and copyright protection. Revenue is generated through platform subscription and usage fees for generating and optimizing ad creative at scale. The platform has processed over $2.65 billion in media spend enabling performance prediction capabilities.
2. In-house Digital Marketing (Oliver): Oliver is the pioneer and global leader in building in-house digital marketing capabilities for global brands. It deploys digital marketing talent and Gen AI tools within client organizations, operating as an in-housing model. Oliver has more than tripled in size since joining Brandtech. Revenue is generated through service contracts with global brand clients.
3. Digital & Performance Marketing (Jellyfish): Jellyfish is one of the world's leading digital and performance marketing companies, with expertise and accreditation across leading technology platforms. Offers performance marketing services and the Share of Model platform.
4. E-commerce Technology (Acorn-i): Acorn-i is an AI-driven e-commerce technology company helping brands grow across direct-to-consumer and marketplace channels. Provides SaaS technology (Ignite) combined with services across digital channels. Has approximately 100 clients across five continents.
5. Influencer & Creator Marketing: Collectively provides full-service influencer marketing powered by proprietary technology, data analytics, and management tools. Mofilm provides a tech-enabled dispersed global community of 10,000+ filmmakers. Revenue generated through service fees and platform usage.

Pricing tiers

Go-to-market motion1 record

Distribution channels3 records

Marketing channels8 records

Core offering

Brandtech Ventures is the venture investment arm of The Brandtech Group, making minority equity investments in early-stage startups building tech-enabled solutions that help global brands do marketing better, faster, and cheaper. Its portfolio spans adtech, marketing analytics, generative AI, e-commerce, AR/metaverse, creator economy, and sustainable media. The arm provides portfolio companies with strategic access to The Brandtech Group's enterprise client base and proprietary marketing technology stack (Pencil, Jellyfish, Oliver, Collectively).

Product overview

The Brandtech Group is the world's leading generative AI marketing group delivering a portfolio of products and services that help global brands do marketing better, faster and cheaper using technology. The core platform is Pencil (and Pencil Pro), the #1 generative AI marketing platform that enables end-to-end generation of ads from insights through to creating headlines, copy, images and video, with predictive capabilities powered by $2.65B in media spend. Pencil is supported by a suite of specialized companies: Jellyfish (digital/performance marketing with Share of Model for AI perception tracking), Oliver (in-house marketing capabilities), Collectively (influencer/creator economy), Mobkoi (mobile marketing), Acorn-i (e-commerce technology), 55 (data analytics), Gravity Road (content/marketing), DP6 (LatAm data science), Mofilm (filmmaker community), and Brandtech Consulting (strategic innovation). The company also operates Brandtech Ventures for investments in marketing technology startups. Key AI features include Bias Breaker for ethical image generation, the Gen AI Carbon Calculator for environmental impact measurement, and the Gen AI Residency Program for creative talent development.

Differentiator

Problem solved

Functional benefit

Brands

• Pencil: World's #1 generative AI marketing platform that creates ads and marketing content. Has made over 5 million ads across 5,000 brands with $2.65 billion in media spend flowing through the platform enabling performance predictions.
• Pencil Pro
• Oliver
• Jellyfish
• Mobkoi
• Acorn-i
• 55
• Brandtech Consulting
• Collectively
• Gravity Road
• Mofilm
• DP6
• Brandtech Ventures

Products and services

• Brandtech Ventures Investment Portfolio
• Niantic (portfolio investment)
• VidMob (portfolio investment)
• CreativeX (portfolio investment)
• Zappar (portfolio investment)
• AI Foundation (portfolio investment)
• Traackr (portfolio investment)
• Jivox (portfolio investment)
• Provenance (portfolio investment)
• Crossing Minds (portfolio investment)
• Scope3 (portfolio investment)
• Good-Loop (portfolio investment)
• Pixlee-Turnto (portfolio investment)
• Elsy (portfolio investment)
• Automat (portfolio investment)
• Blacktag (portfolio investment)
• Griffin / GGP (portfolio investment)
• Engage Video Group (portfolio investment)

Quantifiable outcome

• 235,000 Gen AI assets produced 62% faster, 55% more cheaply, with a 40% average performance uplift for 3 of the world's top 10 global advertisers
• +5 more outcomes

Named customers11 records

Segments3 records

Ideal customer profiles1 record

API detail

Has API

No

API docs

API detail

Core technology

AI maturity

App detail

Integration10 records

AI capability11 records

Feature5 records

Partnerships

Six partnerships are on record, tiered core and minor.

• Boston Consulting Group (BCG)coreStrategic or Co-development Partner · 20 May 2025BCG and Pencil (Brandtech's Gen AI platform) announced a global strategic partnership in May 2025 to accelerate enterprise adoption of AI in marketing. The collaboration combines BCG's expertise in AI transformation and organizational change with Pencil's Gen AI technology. BCG provides strategic guidance, operating model transformation, and change management, while Pencil serves as the creative Gen AI engine for data-driven content generation, testing, and optimization. Brandtech delivers technology infrastructure and creative automation as needed.
• Scope3coreTechnology or Integration · 15 May 2025Brandtech released a white paper with Scope3 in May 2025 examining the environmental impact of using generative AI to create ads and marketing assets. Scope3 is a technology company that helps deliver safe, sustainable growth in media, advertising, and AI. Brandtech also announced a minority investment in Scope3. Scope3 CEO Brian O'Kelley noted that measuring AI's environmental footprint is key to unlocking sustainable growth. The partnership includes a Gen AI carbon footprint calculator for text and image generation use cases.
• AdobecoreTechnology or Integration · 12 December 2024Brandtech and Adobe announced a partnership in December 2024 to integrate Adobe Firefly Services into Brandtech's Pencil Pro platform. This integration gives Brandtech clients immediate, seamless access to Adobe creative tools and Gen AI foundation models. Pencil Pro users can interoperate seamlessly between Adobe Photoshop, Adobe After Effects, and generative AI workflows within Pencil Pro. Brandtech also leverages Adobe Custom Models for content curated to clients' specific brand requirements. Since launch, Adobe Firefly has driven over 9 billion generations.
• Northwestern UniversityminorStrategic or Co-development Partner · 31 October 2024Brandtech partnered with Northwestern University's Master of Science in Communication Program in October 2024. Graduate students received full access to the Pencil Gen AI marketing platform as part of their curriculum. Students learned AI content generation and digital storytelling, culminating in a live pitch for food rescue nonprofit Sharing Excess. Top performers may secure internships with Brandtech. Students receive a Pencil Pro Certification LinkedIn badge upon course completion.
• C4, UCL, RCAminorStrategic or Co-development Partner · 1 July 2023C4's Alex Mahon chairs a creative AI lab in partnership with Brandtech, University College London (UCL), and the Royal College of Art (RCA), announced in July 2025. The lab focuses on creative AI research and development.
• One Young WorldminorStrategic or Co-development PartnerOne Young World is a not-for-profit global community for exceptional young leaders, co-founded by Brandtech founder and CEO David Jones and Kate Robertson. Brandtech has given One Young World equity in the company so that when Brandtech does well, so does the organization. This partnership aligns Brandtech's purpose beyond profit mission with business growth.

Scale indicators12 records

Recent moves7 records

Expansion highlights6 records

Market position

Competitive moat6 records

Customer concentration

• Xx.com/brandtechgroup
• LinkedInlinkedin.com/company/the-brandtech-group

Revenue estimate

Valuation estimate

Number of profiles

Profiles10 records

Subsidiaries19 records

Funding overview

Funding rounds

Investors

Funding detail is available on the Subscription and Enterprise plan.Contact sales →

M&A

Investments32 records

M&A and investment is available on the Subscription and Enterprise plan.Contact sales →

Frequently asked questions about Brandtech Ventures