Exclusive: Integral Ad Science hires Lidiane Jones as CEO
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Lidiane Jones (L) will succeed Lisa Utzschneider (R) as CEO of Integral Ad Science. Photos: Pamela Hanson; Courtesy of IAS
Integral Ad Science has named former Bumble and Slack CEO Lidiane Jones as its next CEO, succeeding Lisa Utzschneider, they exclusively tell Axios.
Why it matters: The CEO transition comes as generative AI reshapes digital advertising, boosting demand for trusted independent measurement.
Driving the news: Utzschneider says the decision to step down was both personal and professional.
- After more than seven years leading IAS — including taking it public in 2021 before its $1.9 billion acquisition by Novacap last year — she says she wanted to spend more time with family as her oldest daughter starts her senior year of high school and that she felt confident in the business.
- "It just felt like the right moment in time for IAS, now as a private company, to step down and hand the reins over to a phenomenal tech leader like Lidiane Jones," she says.
- Utzschneider will remain a special advisor to the board through the end of the year. She also will serve as a special advisor to Novacap and their portfolio companies.
The big picture: Brands have long relied on IAS — alongside rival DoubleVerify — to independently measure ad quality, brand safety and performance across the web, social media and streaming platforms.
- Rather than positioning IAS as an ad tech vendor, Utzschneider says she describes it as a "deep tech" company and that its competitive advantage comes from its engineering talent and tech.
- That thinking motivated her recruitment of Jones, whose background spans Microsoft, Salesforce, Slack and Bumble, and whom Utzschneider called "a seasoned tech leader who is deep in all things AI."
Between the lines: Jones says she was drawn to IAS after seeing its capabilities firsthand.
- "When Lisa reached out to me, she started with, 'Take a look at our tech.' I was hooked. I was amazed at the level of sophistication, quality and depth of the technology and the opportunity," Jones says.
What to watch: Large language models and AI answer engines are the next major challenge for advertisers.
- While Utzschneider declined to discuss any specific partnerships with companies like OpenAI, she says IAS intends to innovate "wherever" brands choose to advertise.
- Jones says her priority isn't to dramatically change strategy but to accelerate it. IAS can move faster as a private company, she adds, investing in internal development and potential acquisitions.
- "Our goal is to become ... a very critical part of the trust infrastructure of this AI era," Jones says. "IAS has the right technology, the right people and the right customer base for us to go do that."
