Walmart acquires self-serve ad tech
Walmart Inc. has bought digital technology to enhance a new “self-serve” advertising tool that lets suppliers test and tweak their online ads.
Walmart said Thursday it has acquired the assets of Thunder Industries Inc., a San Francisco-based company that develops automated ad technology. Thunder’s employees will move to Walmart, as well, Walmart Chief Customer Officer Janey Whiteside said in a news release.
Walmart did not disclose the terms of the deal.
“Coming later this year, our display self-serve platform will enable partners to activate and manage their display campaigns with the help of automation,” Whiteside said.
This means suppliers of all sizes, including third-party sellers on Walmart’s marketplace, can try out different versions of ads created for them by Walmart’s in-house media agency, Whiteside said. They can then quickly see which versions are most effective.
The ad agency that Walmart brought in-house in 2019 changed its name last week to Walmart Connect. It offers digital advertisers an extensive customer database and a proprietary ad targeting and measuring platform.
— Serenah McKay
Tyson, colleges team on training program
Tyson Foods Inc. is starting a career development program to provide job skills training and certification for employees at their workplace.
The program, Upward Pathways, will be tested at 10 plants and is a partnership between Tyson Foods, community colleges and other adult education providers, the company said Thursday in a news release.
Classes are currently available at a beef and pork processing plant in Council Bluffs, Iowa. They will be made available at the other locations, at no cost to employees, throughout this year, Tyson said, including at its Berryville and Green Forest plants where the training provider is North Arkansas College.
When the curriculum is completed, workers will receive a Tyson-branded credential, recognizing their new skills and readiness for advancement within the company.
John R. Tyson, chief sustainability officer and son of the company’s chairman, said in a written statement that the program is an offshoot of Tyson’s successful workforce education Upward Academy program.
— Nathan Owens
Index picks up 2.69 for close of 519.19
The Arkansas Index, a price-weighted index that tracks the largest public companies based in the state, closed Thursday at 519.19, up 2.69.
“Equities posted modest gains as volatility remains high with the energy sector outperforming after a meeting by OPEC nations and allies that left output curbs unchanged,” said Leon Lants, managing director at Stephens Inc.
The index was developed by Bloomberg News and the Democrat-Gazette with a base value of 100 as of Dec. 30, 1997.