BotD: Ash Farr's new global CMO role revealed; Google unveils chain of AI moves

May 21, 2025

Welcome to Best of the Day, on the day Google informed the world that it’s beginning to catch up in the AI race and former Aussie adlander Ash Farr became CMO of the ASX-listed Decidr.

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The Day Today: Farr side of Decidr; Google goes big on AI; Return of Tropfest

Ash Farr joins Decidr as global CMO

Farr: ‘a new operating system for ambition’

Former McCann Australia CEO Ash Farr has become the global chief marketing officer of the ASX-listed Decidr. The agentic AI company, founded by former Pureprofile founder Paul Chan, is the only pure play AI company on the ASX.

Farr, who left Australia in 2016 for a New York role with McCann, later joined WPP in a US-based role. His new appointment sees him take on the dual role of president of Decidr America and global CMO. Decidr landed on the ASX earlier this year via a reverse takeover of the previously listed Live Verdure. It currently has a market capitalisation of $69m. Farr said: “The vision for Decidr isn’t incremental; it’s radical. This isn’t another AI agent company. It’s the beginning of a new operating system for ambition.”

Google centralises search around AI

Google shook up the state of play in generative AI with a series of announcements at its annual I/O event. Among the biggest moves were a new AI mode for search. Similarly to Meta, the company is seeking to capture an even bigger share of marketing dollars by automating more of the steps of planning and buying search advertising.

Tropfest to return?

Australia’s short film festival Tropfest appears to be coming out of suspended animation after a six year absence.

ABC has a 9.8% gender pay gap

New data from the Workforce Gender Equality Agency revealed that the ABC has a 9.8% pay gap for men over women. WGEA identified a variance within 5% as ideal. SBS has a gap of 1.9%.

Cat scratch

Antony Catalano, proprietor of Australian Community Media and a strategic investor in Southern Cross Austereo, went public on criticisms for attempts by activist fund Sandon Capital to spill the ACA board. He criticised Sandon for attempting to do so by campaigning for shares owned by ARN to be unlocked rom such votes. Catalano told Capital Brief the move was “an insult to all shareholders”.

Here comes the Mumbrellacast

Tonight’s edition of the Mumbrellacast proves to be an opportunity for me to correct myself on yesterday’s Best of the Day oversimplification of Omnicom Media Group’s repositioning of Resolution Digital. Resolution’s media operations will be folded into fellow OMG agency Hearts and Science, although it will continue with its specialist offerings in its own right. We discuss the philosophy in the Mumbrellacast, which drops into your podcatcher in a few minutes’ time. The Mumbrellacast also features first thoughts on today’s Google moves, the gender stats, and the challenges for Ooh Media to make itself easier for agencies to work with.