"Rocket science" for marketing

Ever opened a webpage to see an advertisement that's pertinent to your recent search history? Perhaps you've recently browsed online for a new car, and opened a webpage to see an ad for that specific make and model. Behind many of these advertisements lies an exact science - based on rocket science, in fact - powered by MIT "programmatic marketing" startup DataXu. Founded in 2008, the startup leverages big data to choose the most relevant advertisements for users in real-time, with aims of helping companies see the greatest return on investment (ROI) in online marketing. "We're helping companies compete in a world that's full of data," says MIT alumnus Bill Simmons PhD '08, DataXu's co-founder and chief technology officer, who co-invented the software. Originally designed to help NASA plan Mars missions, DataXu's software rapidly analyzes user data - such as previously viewed advertisements and videos - and data from third-party providers on a user's interests, demographics, and purchase history. This helps map out a customer's tastes and buying intentions. In less than one millisecond, the software determines which advertisement from a pool of clients will most likely ensure that a user will act - by clicking through or eventually purchasing a product - while calculating the cost of the advertisement down to fractions of a penny.