‘Marcel’ will use artificial intelligence to change how teams and clients work together
Elly Yates-Roberts |
French public relations firm Publicis Groupe and Microsoft have partnered to develop Marcel, a new system that uses cognitive services and artificial intelligence to improve the way the group’s teams and clients connect and work together.
Publicis.Sapient, the group’s technology arm, is defining the architecture, design and user experience. Microsoft will build the platform, leveraging Microsoft Azure AI and Office 365.
The Marcel platform will identify relevant connections amongst Publicis Group’s 80,000 employees and enable employees to take advantage of the combined experiences that exist around its group. Publicis Groupe has been testing new collaborative models that are already driving results for some of its major global clients.
“AI is one of the most transformative technologies of our time, but its real power lies in how it can be applied to amplify human ingenuity,” said Satya Nadella, CEO of Microsoft. “And that’s the beauty of Marcel. At Microsoft, we believe that people no longer just work for companies – companies need to work for their people. Marcel embodies that belief. That’s what makes this collaboration so seamless and natural.”
“Marcel is a crucial step in Publicis Groupe’s commitment to radically change our industry, for the good of our clients and our people,” said Arthur Sadoun, chairman and CEO of Publicis Groupe. “It’s why we’re thrilled to be able to draw on Microsoft’s ground-breaking talent, capabilities and resources in artificial intelligence, to build the platform of the future, today. Thanks to the dedication of Satya and his teams we’re accelerating on putting Marcel at the heart of the Groupe, to deliver big ideas that harness creativity in all of its forms.”
Publicis Groupe and Microsoft will present Marcel for the first time at the Viva Technology event in Paris, France, on 24 May 2018.