Adobe Bolsters AI Marketing Tools With $1.9 Billion Semrush Buy

Adobe is buying Semrush for $1.9 billion in a move to supercharge its AI-driven marketing stack. Reuters reports: Semrush designs and develops AI software that helps companies with search engine optimization, social media and digital advertising. The acquisition, expected to close in the first half of next year, would allow Adobe to help marketers better understand how their brands are viewed by online consumers through searches on websites and generative AI bots such as ChatGPT and Gemini. "The price is steep as Semrush isn't a massive revenue engine on its own, so Adobe is likely paying for strategic value. The payoff could be high too if Adobe can quickly turn Semrush's data into monetizable AI products," said Emarketer analyst Grace Harmon.

"While we are positive on Adobe restarting its M&A engine given the success that it has seen with this motion over the years... this deal likely does little to answer the questions revolving around the company's creative cloud business," added William Blair analysts.

Oh, Adobe

[crunchy_one]

So that's your strategy for growing the company, buying a marketing firm that's encased themselves in a shiny, candy colored AI shell? At least it will be a magnificent write off one day soon, while not contributing one dot to improving your products.

And look how excited we are

[ebunga]

Everyone here on /. is just absolutely eating up news about the third most hated company on the planet buying up a company that deals with the most hated tech on the planet. They could have bought private jets for every VP's assistant and it would have been more beneficial to the company, and they would have had a cool hundred million left over for a small halloween party.

Stripped for Parts and Left for Dead

[TheWho79]

Also, lets not forget that the 'Rush was born in Russia and the bulk of SemRush's tech was built by Russian coders who are no longer with the company after it left.

Worldcom (or MCI) Scam

[packrat0x]

Adobe is running the MCI Worldcom scam. Merging with or acquiring companies, to keep the outside auditors from learning the true health of the company.

Auditors like to do year-to-year comparisons. But when a company has a large acquisition or merger, it makes a mess of comparisons. The client isn't going to pay extra money for the more thorough (and difficult) audit. So the client gets a 1-2 year grace period for everything to settle. And then the client has *another* merger/acquisition...

So the big questions:
1) Best way to make money on Adobe's misfortune.
2) How to force Adobe into bankruptcy.