Phil Schraeder

Phil Schraeder is best known as the driving force behind GumGum's transformation into one of the AdTech industry's leading contextual intelligence platforms, championing a future where advertising effectiveness and user privacy are not mutually exclusive. As CEO, he has positioned GumGum at the forefront of the post-cookie era by leveraging the company's proprietary AI and computer vision technology — branded as Verity — to analyze the full context of web pages, images, and video for brand-safe, highly relevant ad targeting without relying on personal data or third-party identifiers. His vocal advocacy has made him a go-to voice in industry conversations about identity, privacy regulation, and the viability of contextual advertising at scale. Schraeder joined GumGum in 2014 as Chief Operating Officer, where he helped scale the company's commercial operations and technology infrastructure before ascending to the CEO role. Under his leadership, GumGum expanded its global footprint, deepened partnerships with major holding companies and independent agencies, and built out its contextual product suite to serve brand advertisers across display, video, and in-game advertising environments. He has guided the company through landmark regulatory shifts including GDPR and CCPA, consistently arguing that privacy-safe solutions can outperform surveillance-based targeting when built on strong contextual signals. A frequent presence at major industry conferences including Cannes Lions, Advertising Week, and IAB events, Schraeder has become one of AdTech's most recognizable operator-advocates. His strategic bets on contextual AI have been validated as the industry accelerates away from third-party cookies, and GumGum's growth under his tenure reflects a broader market recognition that contextual targeting represents a durable, scalable alternative to behavioral advertising.

• Led GumGum's evolution from a computer vision startup into a full-scale contextual intelligence platform used by major global brands and agencies
• Championed and commercialized GumGum's Verity contextual AI engine as a scalable alternative to cookie-based targeting
• Guided GumGum through GDPR, CCPA, and the deprecation of third-party cookies while growing the company's revenue and market position
• Expanded GumGum's global presence with offices and partnerships across North America, Europe, and Asia-Pacific

• Contributed op-eds and thought leadership pieces to AdExchanger, Adweek, and Campaign on contextual advertising and privacy