Helping successful entrepreneurs achieve the desired big liquidity event, Mergers and Acquisitions (M&A) advisors play a significant role for many businesses. With over 20 years of experience in buying and selling private and publicly held companies, Brett Davis, Managing Partner at Continuum Advisors, shares his professional opinion on the inevitable shifts in the industry.
The most prominent factor causing seismic changes is the rise of advanced technologies, specifically Artificial Intelligence (AI). The impact of AI is tangible in nearly all industries across the globe—according to recent data, the global AI market is supposed to increase from $100 billion in 2024 to a mind-blowing $2 trillion by 2030. Fueling the AI revolution, the same report stated that 80% of companies consider AI a top priority in their business strategy, and 65% of customers trust brands that use AI to improve services. These statistics paint a crystal-clear picture of the future for many industries, highlighting the growing impetus to adopt and leverage AI technology worldwide.
As with all game-changing innovations, AI also has its skeptics. Those who fear the inevitable era of technology worry about AI diminishing human connections. Davis comments on these concerns, "It's important to realize that one doesn't exclude the other. AI is already present in many aspects of commerce and everyday life, and it's only going to become more prominent. There's a natural tendency to have concerns about advanced technologies eroding personal interactions. It's been our experience, however, that once we discovered our optimal use cases for AI tools, we were then able to spend less time on tactical work and more time collaborating with clients and leveraging, in many instances, more impactful insights."
Continuum is a boutique M&A advisory firm that guides carefully selected clients through the nerve-wracking and exciting transaction process. With experience on the buy and the sell side, Continuum focuses on increasing the value of its clients while connecting them with prospective buyers and investors best suited to accelerate growth and recognize the value that's been created to date. As M&A and capital advisors, Continuum's dedicated team advises companies in the digital marketing and creative technology sectors and has become known for advising ahead of the curve and propelling transformational growth for their clients.
A big part of finding a strong partner is ensuring both companies align on values, incentives, and future goals. Finding the right match can sometimes be time-consuming, resulting in clients' frustration and impatience. As noticed by Davis over years of experience, it's very likely that a buyer hasn't met their optimal seller yet, and vice versa. A company's competitors and the needs of its target audiences are evolving faster and faster, making it increasingly unlikely for companies to already have a meaningful connection with their perfect match. Fortunately, with today's technology people don't have to know their perfect match to have an opportunity to connect.
According to Davis, there's tremendous value in leveraging external data sources in a smart, creative, systematic way, while combining that information with personal intricacies. Utilizing AI and Machine Learning (ML) technology strategically opens a plethora of possibilities, uncovering mountains of data that otherwise would have remained hidden. By accumulating and parsing data sets, M&A advisors can significantly speed up the search, qualification, and due diligence process, which reduces risk and enables deals to close sooner.
When speaking of the M&A industry, Davis emphasizes that specialists have been operating the same for decades, and the business focuses on relationships more than anything else. "That part will never change," added Davis. "Neither will the data that we consume and the information we use. What has changed is the volume, speed, and ability to evaluate, and understand data, and that's where AI comes in."
"We've only just explored the tip of the iceberg when it comes to AI, but it's clear that most places are heading to a place where advanced technology is mainstream. We're far from understanding the full spectrum of threats and benefits to AI, but it's crucial to explore it to the best of our abilities," said Davis.
There are boundless use cases of AI, including filtering through overflowing data, understanding which information pools are of the most value, guiding clients through transactional complexities, and preparing for the process of buying or selling. Davis also mentions the role advanced technology now plays during diligence, where AI accelerates the review of competitive markets and understanding a company's market position relative to where the industry is likely headed.
Continuum has completed transactions on six continents, providing services to various clients across the globe. With a proven track record and an increasingly relevant portfolio of clients, Continuum has the necessary expertise to guide shareholders and leadership teams through the complex transaction process. Like many others now embracing AI, Continuum has started implementing advanced technology solutions within their organization, leading to more efficient delivery of services and meaningful collaboration with clients.
"It's a big world, and there are companies out there that you're competing against that you don't even know you're competing against. Some audiences could be wildly valuable to you that you don't know about. There are new investors, new people, and new organizations that could benefit from leveraging your products and tools, and you just don't know it. And it's not anyone's fault. It's just the reality," expressed Davis. "AI enables us to identify some far-off alternative use cases and audiences, allowing us to provide clients with relationship-oriented guidance that's more scalable and efficient."
