Krish Sailam — SVP of AI at Level Agency

Level Agency, a performance marketing firm, has appointed Krish Sailam as Senior Vice President of AI, a newly created executive role designed to accelerate the agency's artificial intelligence strategy and capabilities. This appointment signals Level Agency's commitment to embedding AI deeply into its service offerings, internal operations, and client campaign execution. Sailam's elevation to this C-suite adjacent role reflects a broader organizational prioritization of machine learning, predictive analytics, and AI-driven optimization across the agency's performance marketing stack. Level Agency has positioned itself as a data-driven performance marketing agency serving mid-market and enterprise clients across sectors including healthcare, education, and financial services. The creation of an SVP of AI role suggests the agency is moving beyond ad-hoc AI tool adoption toward a structured, leadership-driven AI transformation. Sailam is expected to oversee the development and deployment of proprietary AI models, guide the integration of third-party AI platforms, and help clients leverage AI for improved targeting, creative optimization, and media efficiency. This move is significant in the AdTech ecosystem as it reflects a growing trend among independent performance agencies to formalize AI leadership at the executive level, competing with larger holding company agencies that have dedicated AI labs and research divisions. By appointing a dedicated AI executive, Level Agency is signaling to clients and the market that AI is not merely a feature but a foundational pillar of its competitive differentiation and service delivery model.

The appointment of a dedicated SVP of AI at Level Agency reflects a broader industry shift where independent and mid-sized performance marketing agencies are racing to institutionalize AI capabilities to remain competitive against both large holding companies and emerging AI-native marketing platforms. This move intensifies competitive pressure on peer agencies that have not yet formalized AI leadership, potentially accelerating similar appointments across the independent agency landscape. From a market dynamics perspective, this development underscores the increasing commoditization of traditional media buying and the need for agencies to differentiate through proprietary technology and AI-driven insights. Clients are increasingly demanding measurable, data-backed performance outcomes, and agencies with dedicated AI leadership are better positioned to deliver predictive audience modeling, automated creative testing, and real-time bidding optimization. Level Agency's move may also influence how the agency structures partnerships with AI vendors, DSPs, and data providers. In the context of AdTech trends, this appointment aligns with the industry's broader pivot toward AI-powered performance marketing amid signal loss from cookie deprecation and privacy regulation. Agencies that can build or integrate AI tools capable of operating in cookieless environments — leveraging first-party data, contextual signals, and probabilistic modeling — will hold a significant advantage. Sailam's role will likely be central to navigating these challenges for Level Agency's client base.