Metaforms Raises $9M, McDonald's Doubles AI Investment, Amazon's Alexa+ Ads - Sales & Marketing AI Weekly #18
August 08, 2025 -
Sales & Marketing AI Weekly
Hi there,
Welcome to this week's edition of Sales & Marketing AI Weekly.
In this edition, we delve into the latest developments in AI-driven sales and marketing tools. Metaforms, a Bengaluru-based AI startup, has successfully raised $9 million in Series A funding to enhance its market research automation platform. This funding round, led by Peak XV Partners, aims to expand the company's capabilities and increase its survey processing capacity. Meanwhile, McDonald's has announced plans to double its AI investment by 2027, with a particular focus on India as a key hub for data governance and engineering.
Additionally, Amazon is exploring the integration of advertisements within its generative AI assistant, Alexa+, as part of its monetization strategy. This initiative was discussed by CEO Andy Jassy during the company's Q2 earnings call. In another significant move, Reddit has forecasted a revenue boost for the third quarter, surpassing Wall Street estimates, driven by its AI-powered marketing tools. Following this announcement, Reddit's shares saw a significant rise in after-hours trading.
Welcome to this week's edition of Sales & Marketing AI Weekly.
In this edition, we delve into the latest developments in AI-driven sales and marketing tools. Metaforms, a Bengaluru-based AI startup, has successfully raised $9 million in Series A funding to enhance its market research automation platform. This funding round, led by Peak XV Partners, aims to expand the company's capabilities and increase its survey processing capacity. Meanwhile, McDonald's has announced plans to double its AI investment by 2027, with a particular focus on India as a key hub for data governance and engineering.
Additionally, Amazon is exploring the integration of advertisements within its generative AI assistant, Alexa+, as part of its monetization strategy. This initiative was discussed by CEO Andy Jassy during the company's Q2 earnings call. In another significant move, Reddit has forecasted a revenue boost for the third quarter, surpassing Wall Street estimates, driven by its AI-powered marketing tools. Following this announcement, Reddit's shares saw a significant rise in after-hours trading.
Metaforms Raises $9 Million for AI Market Research Automation
Bengaluru-based AI startup Metaforms has secured $9 million in Series A funding to enhance its market research automation platform, enabling agencies to manage more projects efficiently. Read more
McDonald's to Double AI Investment by 2027
McDonald's has announced plans to double its investment in artificial intelligence by 2027, with a focus on India as a key hub for data governance and engineering. Read more
Amazon Plans AI-Driven Ads in Alexa+
Amazon is exploring the integration of advertisements within its generative AI assistant, Alexa+, as part of a strategy to boost monetization and enhance product discovery. Read more
Reddit Expects Revenue Boost from AI Ads, Shares Rise
On July 31, 2025, Reddit announced a forecast for third-quarter revenue surpassing Wall Street estimates, driven by its AI-powered marketing tools. This led to a significant rise in the company's shares. Read more
Salesforce and ServiceNow to Invest in Genesys
Salesforce and ServiceNow are reportedly in advanced talks to invest $750 million each in Genesys, a company known for its AI-powered customer contact center software. This investment would value Genesys at around $15 billion. Read more
Caseflood Raises $3.2 Million for AI Voice Agents
California-based startup Caseflood has secured $3.2 million in funding to develop AI voice agents aimed at improving client interactions for law firms. Read more
2X Acquires Outbound Funnel to Boost AI and RevOps Services
On July 31, 2025, 2X announced its acquisition of Outbound Funnel, aiming to enhance its capabilities in AI-powered sales engagement and revenue operations. Read more
EVERSANA Launches AI Marketing Agency with Google Cloud
On August 4, 2025, EVERSANA announced the creation of an AI-driven marketing agency for life sciences, leveraging Google Cloud technology to automate operations and improve efficiency. Read more
Salesforce Acquires AI Platform Bluebirds
Salesforce has acquired Bluebirds, an AI-driven prospecting platform, to improve sales efficiency for small businesses. The integration aims to automate lead generation and qualification. Read more
Clay Secures $100 Million Funding Led by CapitalG
Clay, an AI-driven sales tool, has raised $100 million in funding, increasing its valuation to $3.1 billion. The funding round was led by CapitalG, with participation from other investors. Read more
Wallarm Launches API Revenue Protection
Wallarm has introduced a new API Revenue Protection feature, enabling CISOs to assess the financial impact of API attacks. This tool aims to connect API security with business outcomes by safeguarding critical APIs and will be demonstrated at Black Hat USA 2025. Read more
Brandwatch and Trajaan Partner for Enhanced Consumer Insights
Brandwatch has announced a strategic partnership with Trajaan to integrate search intelligence into its consumer insights platform. This collaboration aims to provide brands with comprehensive data on consumer intent by combining social engagement with search demand across various channels. Read more
S4 Capital's Monks Appoints New EVP, Head of Global Data
Chris Wilhelmi has been named as the Executive Vice President and Head of Global Data at S4 Capital's Monks, where he will focus on AI integration in marketing. Read more
X to Add Ads in Grok's AI Responses
Elon Musk announced that X will introduce advertisements in responses from its AI chatbot Grok to boost ad revenue. This move follows the departure of former CEO Linda Yaccarino. Read more
PulsePoint Introduces AI Tool for Campaign Optimization
On August 5, 2025, PulsePoint announced the launch of Adaptive Optimization™, an AI-driven tool aimed at improving campaign delivery by optimizing budgets towards more relevant audience cohorts. Read more
Google Addresses Concerns Over AI Search Impact on Traffic
On August 6, 2025, Google addressed concerns about its AI search features affecting website traffic, stating that while some sites may see changes, overall click quality has improved. Read more
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