Australian-built media platform Rubii is gaining traction among independent agencies, with JOY, Thinkerbell, Cool Media, Media Republic, Amplifyd, Noisy Beast, and Awaken among its latest partners, with more expected in the coming weeks.
Rubii is an agentic, AI-powered media operating system, purpose-built to bring intelligence and automation to the most complex and resource-intensive workflows experienced by today’s media teams.
This is especially critical in media operations, where the pressure is highest. Teams are managing complex, multi-channel campaigns, generating reporting and insights, and navigating end-of-month reconciliation and invoicing – much of which remains manual and fragmented across the industry.
With Rubii powering operations, media teams are able to operate more efficiently, scale with confidence, and drive superior client and business performance.
The company has also announced the appointment of Kristian Waller as Chief Customer Officer, responsible for scaling partner growth and ensuring agencies extract maximum value as they evolve their operating models.
Waller has more than 20 years’ experience in media in senior sales leadership roles and joins Rubii from Paramount, where he was NSW Sales Director. He has also worked with several leading media companies, including oOh!media, ARN, and MTV Australia.
Rubii Founder and CEO, Ben Holmes said the market is moving past AI experimentation.
“There’s been a lot of noise around AI, but what we’re seeing now is a shift from tools on the edges to systems at the core of how teams actually operate,” he said.
“The biggest inefficiencies and costs still sit in campaign delivery, optimisation, reporting, and finance teams. That’s where we’ve focused, and where we’re building toward full end-to-end automation.
“Partners coming on board now aren’t experimenting, they’re rebuilding how they run.”
Waller said one of the biggest challenges was navigating the explosion of AI tools.
“There’s no shortage of tools, but that’s part of the problem. The sheer number of tools available creates fragmentation and slows teams down. What we’re seeing is a move toward consolidation – platforms that can handle multiple parts of the workflow in one place, rather than stitching together point solutions”, he said.
“And that’s exactly what attracted me to Rubii. Simplicity, more than ever, is critical, and we offer a single, unified AI solution for media teams of any shape, size or craft. I genuinely believe what we are building has the potential to reshape the industry.”
Independent agencies are leading adoption, driven by the flexibility to use what works best for them, not what they ‘have’ to use.
Peter Horgan, CEO of JOY, said the platform aligned with the agency’s operating model.
“As an independent, we have the freedom to choose the best systems for how we want to work. Rubii stood out because it improves efficiency across the entire workflow – from delivery through to reporting and finance – without locking us into legacy ways of working,” he said.
For creative-led agencies, the benefits are also being felt beyond media operations, particularly in unlocking time for higher-value strategic and creative work.
Kathryn Furnari, National Head Media Thinker at Thinkerbell, said the platform integrates seamlessly into a creative and media environment.
“Rubii fits effortlessly into how our teams work. The reporting functionality in particular has been a standout. What used to take hours is now done in a fraction of the time, with high-quality visualisation and AI-enabled media and creative insights,” she said.
“That gives our teams the ability to reinvest time back into ‘Measured Magic’, which is ultimately where we deliver the most value to our clients.”
Growth-focused agencies are using the platform to scale more efficiently.
Carly Bunny, Head of Media Trading and Client Services at Cool Media, said Rubii has supported the business through a period of rapid expansion.
“We manage a high volume of campaigns at any one time, and Rubii has enabled us to operate at optimal efficiency. It’s been critical in helping us maintain best practice, significantly reduce manual tasks, and ultimately free up our team to focus on client service. On top of that, the level of support has been exceptional.”
As agencies continue to adapt to rising complexity and margin pressure, platforms like Rubii are increasingly being viewed as critical infrastructure rather than optional tooling.
More agency partnerships will be announced soon.
