Fluency’s Mike Lane on Automating Digital Ad Ops, AI Scale, and Execution Infrastructure

Apr 20, 2026

Mike Lane, Founder and CEO of Fluency, builds an ad execution OS that automates large-scale digital ad operations. He discusses automating campaign execution and reporting, launching hundreds of TikTok accounts instantly, rule-based automation versus AI agents, and AI-driven creative and reporting that cuts time and costs dramatically.

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INSIGHT

Advertising Execution As An Operating System

Fluency is a digital advertising operating system that automates the entire execution layer from account setup to reporting.
It consolidates many point solutions into one platform so teams can build, launch, manage, and push results back into their systems automatically.

ANECDOTE

Launching Hundreds Of TikTok Accounts Overnight

Fluency turned a 3.8 year manual TikTok account rollout into a next-day launch by automating account creation and API integrations.
Example: 800-location franchise would take ~5.5 hours per account manually but Fluency launches them instantly using templates and automation.

ADVICE

Automate Rules Not Manual Tasks

Build reusable automation rules once and apply them across every location or brand to avoid manual errors and scale cleanly.
Use data-driven triggers like weather, occupancy, or inventory to turn ads on or off automatically.

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Mike Lane, CEO of Fluency, explains how automation and AI are transforming digital ad execution at scale. Learn how brands and agencies save time, reduce errors, and scale campaigns across channels.

Takeaways

Fluency positions itself as a digital advertising operating system, automating the full execution layer of campaigns.
The platform eliminates manual ad ops work, saving up to 92% of time and clicks through automation.
It enables massive-scale execution, such as launching hundreds of TikTok accounts instantly instead of taking years to do manually.
Brands and agencies use Fluency to do more with constrained budgets and limited headcount.
AI (via Muse) enhances workflows with automated reporting, insights, and even video summaries for clients.
The platform supports rule-based automation, allowing campaigns to react dynamically to data like weather, inventory, or occupancy.
Cross-channel execution is unified, helping teams manage budgets and performance across platforms in one system.
Media companies use Fluency to scale advertising services for small businesses efficiently through automation and AI-generated creative.
AI is lowering creative costs dramatically, making high-quality ads accessible even to small advertisers.
The biggest market challenge today is AI confusion and decision paralysis among businesses.

Chapters

00:10 Intro & Guest Welcome

00:22 What is Fluency?

00:54 Digital Advertising Operating System Explained

01:46 Who Uses Fluency? (Brands vs Agencies)

04:08 Real Example: Launching TikTok at Scale

05:34 Smart Automation & Data-Driven Campaign Logic

05:49 AI vs Automation in Ad Ops

07:08 Introducing Muse AI

08:18 Automated Reporting & AI-Generated Video Summaries

09:14 Cross-Channel Advertising Challenges

10:29 Sell-Side & Media Company Use Cases

12:07 AI’s Impact on Creative Production Costs

13:29 Vision: Scaling to $100B in Ad Spend

15:30 Biggest Market Challenge: AI Overload

15:56 Competitive Advantage & Ecosystem Role

16:46 Lightning Round & Fun Close

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