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How Ringer Sciences' Yash Gad Uses AI to Help Marketers Weigh Opportunity and Risk
Informing campaigns with data and the audience perspective
Dr. Yash Gad has 20 years of experience in AI and technology across healthcare, marketing, machine learning and analytics. He pioneered the application of custom AI models to merge digital media, proprietary datasets and public datasets to provide insights about the behaviors of customers. He currently serves as chief executive officer for Ringer Sciences.
“Creative is great at answering, ‘How do we say this brilliantly?’ And intelligence should help answer, ‘What is actually worth saying?'”
We spent a few minutes with Yash to learn more about his background, inspirations and helping marketers work more efficiently.
Tell us about a project you’re especially proud of.
More than 10 years ago, my team built a demo for a SXSW booth. I was not a UX designer, but I obsessed over making the data impossible to ignore. We plugged it into these enormous TVs and, almost instantly, had a crowd several people deep around us. It felt like a scene from Pirates of Silicon Valley and taught me how much a great visual presentation can draw people into the data and technology underneath it.
Do you have a secret ritual before a big presentation or brainstorm?
I throw out my notes. I put myself in the audience’s seat and think about what I would genuinely want to hear, learn or be surprised by. Then I walk in with that.
What’s one thing people misunderstand about your role?
That because I run an AI company, I spend all day thinking about AI. I actually spend much more time thinking about people and what they notice, what they believe and what changes their minds. I love working backwards from those points to the tech needed.
What’s an AI tool actually worth the hype?
Claude Code. It dramatically simplifies issues around “I wonder if this could work?” and actually builds something to find out. That is incredibly powerful.
What led you to found Ringer and how does it help the advertising community?
Companies had more data than ever, but somehow less clarity about what to do with it. I founded Ringer to close that gap. For the advertising world that means using AI and data science to find the signals, tensions and opportunities that give creative people better raw material to work with.
Tell us a how marketers can use AI more efficiently.
I’m more interested in helping marketers become even smarter so they’re always on the front foot. Our Readiness Index, for example, uses AI to reveal context and gaps and provides marketers with actionable insights so they’re aligned and ready for opportunity and risk. That is more valuable than boiling an ocean of data or 47 versions of the same headline.
Who changed the trajectory of your career, and what did they teach you?
A chance introduction to an agency (and someone at that agency who became my boss and remains one of my collaborators) pulled me out of basic research. It helped me realize my place was bringing research-grade thinking and technology to real-world problems that needed it.
How has your lived experience shown up in your work?
I’m a computational neuroscientist by training and the son of Indian immigrants. Years of Indian weddings, music and cultural events probably explain my love of bright colors, bold visuals and music. I believe those are often as integral to communicating an idea as anything else.
You’ve got 2 minutes with the industry … What’s your hot take?
AI is about to help us create more mediocre and generic content than at any point in history. When creation becomes abundant, judgment and true innovation become scarce. I’m projecting that the real winners will be those who use their skills to get exceptionally good at deciding what is actually worth making and then use AI to quickly build that.
2 Minutes With is our regular interview series where we chat with creatives about their backgrounds, creative inspirations, work they admire and more. For more about 2 Minutes With, or to be considered for the series, please get in touch.
