Spotlight Interview: Stas Tushinskiy, Founder and CEO of Instreamatic |

Stas Tushinskiy, Founder and CEO of Instreamatic, has a long history in digital audio advertising. With Instreamatic, Tushinskiy is taking his expertise to the next level, leveraging AI to revolutionize advertising through personalization and contextualization. Instreamatic’s journey began as a programmatic audio ad platform, but Tushinskiy quickly recognized the power of AI to enhance ad performance across all formats, particularly video. This led to the development of Instreamatic’s Contextual Video and Audio Ad platform, launched in 2023. This AI-powered platform enables advertisers to create unlimited ad variations, reducing costs and production time while maximizing relevance and engagement.

This Spotlight Interview explores Instreamatic’s innovative approach to advertising, its focus on the QSR industry, and Tushinskiy’s vision for the future of advertising technology. He discusses the challenges and opportunities of personalized audio advertising, the benefits of automation, and the importance of data privacy in an increasingly data-driven world. He also shares his insights on how AI is reshaping customer acquisition and retention strategies, and how Instreamatic is empowering restaurant  to build stronger relationships with their audiences through personalized, contextually relevant advertising.

What inspired you to found Instreamatic, and how has the company’s vision evolved since its inception as a programmatic audio ad platform?

Instreamatic started as a programmatic audio ad platform, and over time, we realized that contextualization and personalization are incredibly effective in improving the performance of any ad campaign, especially video. That insight drove us to invest heavily in developing AI-driven features to support an end-to-end ad optimization platform for both video and audio. Today, our platform offers automatic ad production, ad serving, and ongoing optimization, enabling advertisers to personalize and scale their campaigns more efficiently than ever.

How does Instreamatic leverage AI to create personalized audio ads, and what are the key benefits of this approach for advertisers, particularly in the restaurant industry?

Instreamatic uses AI to optimize video and audio ads by generating multiple ad variations, each tailored to a specific audience segment for personalization. For restaurants, this approach can drive more engagement by including highly relevant information—like the nearest location, promoting time-sensitive offers, or even incorporating user-generated content on social media. The ability to refresh ads dynamically with new content is particularly beneficial for the fast-moving nature of restaurant marketing. 

Can you provide specific examples of how Instreamatic’s technology has been used to create effective and engaging personalized audio ad campaigns for restaurants or QSRs?

Our overview video highlights McDonald’s as an example of how our technology works to create personalized and engaging audio ads, including location, time of day, and nearest restaurant location.

Can you share any case studies or success stories that demonstrate the tangible benefits brands have achieved by implementing Instreamatic’s solutions?

We recently published details of a data-driven, award-winning campaign in the consumer electronics industry. The very same principles of personalized advertising that drove success in that case are highly transferable to QSRs as well. 

What are some of the unique challenges and opportunities in personalizing audio ads compared to other advertising formats, especially for restaurants that rely on visual appeal?

Instreamatic provides both video and audio ad personalization, so restaurants can rely on us to meet their goals—whether they need visually rich ads or audio ads that focus on location-specific offers and voice-driven engagement. The challenge with audio is less about visual appeal and more about conveying the right message, at the right time, to the right audience—and our platform ensures that’s done effectively. 

What are some of the key contextual parameters that Instreamatic’s platform uses to personalize QSR video ads, and how do these parameters contribute to campaign effectiveness?

Our platform uses a variety of contextual parameters to optimize ads, including time of day (to promote breakfast, lunch, or dinner), local offers, and the nearest location. We can also adjust ad styles for different communities to ensure the message resonates more deeply with each segment. This level of personalization has been proven to increase engagement and drive better campaign performance.

How does Instreamatic’s platform automate the ad creation process, from concept generation to video editing? 

Instreamatic automates the entire ad creation process by generating multiple ad concepts tailored to different audience segments. Our platform uses AI to handle everything from the initial creative brief to the final video editing, ensuring that each version of the ad is optimized for its intended audience. This allows for rapid deployment and continuous optimization. 

How can Instreamatic’s technology measure and quantify the effectiveness of personalized video ads compared to traditional, non-personalized ad approaches in the QSR industry?

You can reference our Intel case study, where personalized ads drove a substantial lift in brand favorability and purchase intent. In a similar way, personalized ads for QSRs can be measured against traditional ads to track increases in metrics like brand awareness, engagement, and conversion rates. 

What are some of the key metrics that Instreamatic tracks to assess the performance of its personalized audio ad campaigns for restaurants?

The metrics we track depend on the specific campaign goals. For example, we may look at awareness metrics, click-through rates (CTR), viewability, or engagement rates, all depending on what the QSR aims to achieve. These performance indicators help us continually optimize the campaign to ensure the best possible results.

How do you see the evolving landscape of data privacy regulations impacting the future of personalized advertising in the restaurant industry?

Data privacy regulations will certainly play a role in how we approach personalization. However, by focusing on contextual information—such as time of day, location, and anonymized audience segmentation—we can still deliver highly relevant and personalized ads while respecting user privacy.

What are the key considerations for QSRs when implementing Instreamatic’s solutions?

For QSRs, the key benefit of Instreamatic’s solution lies in being able to target very specific local markets and dayparts. For example, ads can promote breakfast at 8 AM and dinner at 6 PM while featuring the nearest location or the latest offers. This kind of specificity can significantly enhance the relevance and effectiveness of their campaigns. 

How are emerging AI-driven advertising technologies reshaping customer acquisition and retention strategies for QSRs?

AI-driven advertising is revolutionizing how QSRs approach customer acquisition and retention by enabling them to find the perfect message for each audience. With Instreamatic, marketers can run A/B tests at scale automatically, helping them identify what resonates with customers faster and with more precision than ever before.

What are your long-term goals for Instreamatic, and how do you see the company evolving in the next 5-10 years, particularly in its service to restaurants?

In the next 5-10 years, we aim to provide end-to-end media optimization for QSRs. This means a restaurant can activate Instreamatic to handle continuous, automated creative optimization, retargeting existing customers with one message and delivering another to new audiences, all while ensuring every ad is relevant to the time and place it’s shown.

What excites you most about the future of advertising technology, and how do you see it impacting the relationship between brands and consumers?

The most exciting thing is that brands will finally be able to speak directly to their audience with messages that truly resonate. Instead of serving the same generic ad over and over, brands will deliver personalized, relevant content that strengthens the relationship with consumers. This shift will transform how brands connect with their audiences, making advertising feel more like a conversation than a broadcast.