COMPANY BACKGROUND & VISION

1. What inspired you to create HadsUp, and what problem were you aiming to solve in the digital advertising space?

HadsUp was created to fix a structural failure in digital out-of-home advertising: access. 

Traditional DOOH is built for large brands, agencies, and long sales cycles. SMEs are effectively locked out. If you’re a local business, you can advertise on Instagram or YouTube in minutes—but accessing physical screens is slow, expensive, and opaque. We built HadsUp to change that.

HadsUp is an AI-integrated screen network where any advertiser—from a local gym supplement brand to a national retailer—can launch, target, and optimize campaigns as easily as they would on digital platforms. Our screens are placed in high dwell-time environments, and the platform gives advertisers location-level targeting, performance visibility, and flexible budgets.

The goal was simple: to make offline advertising as accessible, measurable, and scalable as online, without losing the real-world impact of physical presence.

2. How would you describe HadsUp’s mission and core values in a few words?

HadsUp’s mission is to make real-world advertising as accessible, measurable, and performance-driven as digital. The core values are accessibility over gatekeeping, data over assumptions, revenue sharing over extraction, speed over bureaucracy, and real attention over empty reach.

3. What sets HadsUp apart from other DOOH (Digital Out-of-Home) and AI-based advertising platforms?

Most DOOH networks are closed, sales-led, and built for large advertisers. They rely on static inventory, long booking cycles, and limited feedback loops. AI is often added as a buzzword, not as infrastructure.

HadsUp was built the opposite way. We combine and manufacture AI-integrated screens, high dwell-time locations, and a self-serve buying model that allows SMEs and global brands to activate campaigns as easily as they would on Instagram or YouTube. Advertisers can target specific locations, time windows, and audiences, see performance signals, and adjust in real time.

At the same time, our revenue-share model aligns incentives: venues, partners, and HadsUp all win only when campaigns perform.

In short, HadsUp turns DOOH from a static media buy into a living, optimisable advertising channel.

4. HadsUp is often described as AI-driven and data-intelligent — can you explain how AI enhances what you do?

AI at HadsUp isn’t a layer on top of advertising—it’s the operating system. Our AI analyses location-level signals such as dwell time patterns, time of day, audience behaviour, and campaign performance. This allows ads to be delivered when attention is highest, not just when inventory is available.

For advertisers, AI enables smarter decisions: which locations perform best, when creatives should rotate, and how budgets should be allocated across screens. Campaigns can be adjusted in near real time instead of waiting for post-campaign reports. While, for venues and partners, AI helps optimise screen utilisation and revenue yield without manual intervention.

The result is simple: offline advertising that learns, adapts, and improves the way digital advertising does—something traditional DOOH was never built to do.

5. How has HadsUp evolved from its early concept to the company it is today?

HadsUp started as a simple question: why is offline advertising still so hard to access and measure?

The early concept was screen-based, but quickly we realised the real problem wasn’t hardware—it was structure. Traditional DOOH networks were fragmented, slow, and designed around manual sales rather than performance.

So we rebuilt the company around three pillars: high dwell-time locations, AI-driven data generation, and a platform model that both SMEs and large brands could use without friction.

Over time, HadsUp evolved from a screen supplier into a media infrastructure company. We shifted to revenue-share partnerships instead of fixed rentals, integrated AI at the location level, and focused on scalable international rollouts rather than isolated networks.

Today, HadsUp operates as a data-intelligent advertising platform—designed to scale across cities and countries, not just sell screens.

THE TECNHOLOGY

1. Can you explain in simple terms how HadsUp’s AI-driven DOOH technology works?

HadsUp works like a digital advertising platform, but in physical spaces. Our screens are placed in high dwell-time locations such as gyms and retail environments. The system uses AI to understand when people are actually present and paying attention, based on patterns like time of day, location performance, and historical engagement data.

Ads are then shown at the moments they’re most likely to be seen. Advertisers can choose locations, schedules, and budgets, and the system continuously learns which placements perform best and adjusts delivery over time.

In simple terms, HadsUp helps advertisers show the right message, in the right place, at the right time—using data instead of guesswork.

2. What kind of data and insights does your system provide to advertisers and venue owners?

HadsUp provides practical, decision-making data, not vanity metrics.

For advertisers, the platform shows how campaigns perform at a location and time-slot level—which screens deliver the strongest exposure, when attention is highest, and how different creatives perform. This allows advertisers to optimise budgets, adjust messaging, and scale what works without waiting for end-of-campaign reports.

For venue owners, the system provides insights into screen utilisation, revenue performance, and peak engagement periods, helping them understand when their locations generate the most value and how advertising fits into their environment.

The key difference is that data is actionable. It’s designed to answer “what should I do next?” rather than just “what happened?”

3. How does the HadsUp dashboard help partners manage campaigns and optimize performance?

The HadsUp dashboard gives partners direct control over campaigns instead of relying on manual reporting or back-and-forth with sales teams.

Advertisers can launch campaigns, select locations, set budgets, schedule time slots, and monitor performance from a single interface. The system highlights which locations, times, and creatives are performing best, making it easy to adjust campaigns while they’re live.

Venue partners use the same dashboard to track screen utilisation, revenue share, and performance trends across their locations, without needing technical expertise.

In short, the dashboard turns DOOH from a static media buy into an actively managed, optimisable channel—similar to how businesses manage campaigns on digital platforms.

4. You often mention “plug-and-play”, what does that mean from a technical and operational perspective?

“Plug-and-play” means HadsUp can be deployed and activated without complex setup, custom integrations, or long onboarding cycles.

Technically, our screens are pre-configured to connect securely, receive content, and start generating data as soon as they’re installed. There’s no local IT infrastructure, no bespoke software work, and no manual calibration required at the venue level.

Operationally, it means partners can go live in days, not months. Screens are installed, locations are onboarded into the platform, and advertising inventory becomes immediately available for sale through the dashboard.

In short, plug-and-play allows HadsUp to scale quickly across cities and countries without adding operational complexity or cost.

5. What steps has HadsUp taken to ensure data privacy and GDPR compliance, especially in the European market.

Data privacy and GDPR compliance were built into HadsUp from day one, especially for Europe.

HadsUp does not collect or store personal data. Our system works with aggregated, anonymised, location-level signals such as time patterns, dwell-time trends, and campaign performance metrics. There is no facial recognition, no identity tracking, and no attempt to identify individuals.

All data processing follows GDPR principles: data minimisation, purpose limitation, and transparency. Infrastructure is designed to ensure secure data handling, clear access controls, and full auditability where required.

For partners and advertisers, this means they get meaningful performance insights without compromising consumer privacy.

BUSINESS MODEL & PARTNERSHIP

1. What business models does HadsUp typically offer its partners, franchise, revenue share, or hybrid models?

HadsUp operates a hybrid business model, designed to adapt to different markets and partner profiles.

In some cases, we work on a revenue-share model, where HadsUp handles the technology and platform while venue or media partners provide locations and sales support. This aligns incentives and removes upfront risk for partners.

In other markets, we offer a franchise-style model, allowing local partners to build and operate their own HadsUp networks using our technology, brand, and platform, while benefiting from centralised infrastructure and know-how.

Often, the model is hybrid—combining franchising at the network level with revenue sharing at the location level. This gives us speed, local ownership, and scalability without heavy central overhead.

2. How do you ensure that partnerships are mutually beneficial, especially in new regions like Iberia?

We design partnerships so everyone wins only when the network performs.

In new regions like Iberia, we avoid heavy fixed costs and long-term guarantees. Instead, we structure partnerships around shared upside—revenue share, performance-based milestones, and phased rollouts. This reduces risk for local partners while ensuring commitment on both sides.

We also keep technology, data, and platform control central, while giving regional partners autonomy over sales and local relationships. That balance is critical: local execution with central consistency.

Finally, we start small and scale fast. Pilot networks prove demand, unit economics, and operational fit before expanding city by city.

3. What role does local market knowledge play in HadsUp’s success strategy?

Local market knowledge is critical to HadsUp’s success—but it’s not enough on its own.

DOOH is fundamentally local: venue types, footfall patterns, advertiser demand, pricing tolerance, and even content preferences vary by city and country. Without local insight, networks fail to monetise.

That’s why HadsUp partners with local operators, media groups, and sales teams who already understand their markets. They bring relationships, cultural context, and speed.

Our role is to provide the technology, data intelligence, and platform discipline that keeps the network scalable and consistent across regions.

In short, local knowledge drives execution; central technology ensures performance and repeatability.

4. How do you approach monetization — both for HadsUp and for the locations where your screens are installed?

Monetisation at HadsUp is built around shared incentives, not fixed extraction.

For advertisers, pricing is flexible and performance-driven, allowing both SMEs and large brands to run campaigns based on location, time, and budget—similar to digital channels.

For locations, screens are monetised through a revenue-share model rather than fixed rent. This means venues earn when campaigns run and perform, without upfront investment or operational burden.

For HadsUp, revenue comes from managing the platform, technology, data intelligence, and network orchestration across markets.

The model aligns everyone around the same goal: maximise attention, performance, and long-term yield, rather than short-term screen fill.

EXPANSION INTO THE IBERIAN PENINSULA

1. Why did you choose the Iberian Peninsula (Spain and Portugal) as a key growth market?

We chose the Iberian Peninsula because it sits at the intersection of high physical footfall and under-digitised DOOH.

Spain and Portugal have strong retail, fitness, hospitality, and transit environments—exactly the high dwell-time locations where HadsUp performs best. At the same time, much of the local DOOH market is still fragmented, sales-led, and difficult for SMEs to access. That gap creates opportunity.

Iberia allows us to deploy quickly through partnerships, prove unit economics city by city, and offer local businesses the same ease of access they already expect from online advertising—without competing head-on with over-consolidated markets.

It’s a region with real-world attention, growing demand for performance marketing, and room for a platform-led model to win.

There’s also a personal element. I genuinely love Spain and Portugal—the culture, the pace, the way people use physical spaces. That matters in a business built around real-world environments. But personal affinity alone isn’t a strategy. Iberia works because the market fundamentals align with how HadsUp is designed: high dwell time, strong local commerce, and a clear gap between digital demand and offline accessibility.

When personal conviction and commercial logic point in the same direction, execution becomes faster and more committed.

2. What are your expectations for the HadsUp Iberia team in terms of growth and regional development?

Our expectation for HadsUp Iberia is disciplined, city-by-city growth, not aggressive expansion for its own sake.

The initial focus is on building strong pilot networks in key cities, proving demand from both local SMEs and regional brands, and establishing reliable sales and operational processes. Once unit economics are proven, the model scales quickly across additional cities using the same playbook.

The Iberia team is expected to operate with local autonomy on sales and partnerships, while staying tightly aligned with central technology, data, and platform standards.

Success isn’t measured by how many screens we deploy—it’s measured by how fast those screens generate sustainable revenue.

3. How do you see HadsUp adapting to the Spanish and Portuguese advertising and retail landscape?

HadsUp adapts by fitting into how advertising and retail actually work in Spain and Portugal, not by forcing a generic global model.

Both markets are highly local, relationship-driven, and SME-heavy, especially in retail, fitness, hospitality, and food. That plays directly to HadsUp’s strengths: flexible budgets, location-level targeting, and simple access without agency gatekeeping.

We tailor pricing, sales motion, and onboarding to local norms, while keeping the technology, data standards, and platform logic consistent. Local teams focus on education and speed—showing businesses they can advertise on physical screens as easily as they do online.

At the same time, the platform supports regional and international brands that want consistent exposure across Iberian cities without dealing with fragmented local networks.

4. Can you share any upcoming partnerships or pilot projects in other countries/regions?

In Türkiye, we’re in the process of building a network through a strategic partnership with Coca-Cola, focusing on high-frequency retail environments where scale and consistency matter.

 

In the United States, we’re establishing our global headquarters and preparing for a phased rollout, starting with focused pilots before broader expansion.

At the same time, we’re fully committed to national expansion in the UK, with a clear plan to build networks across the top 10 cities by 2026. This growth will run in parallel with our expansion across Iberia, following the same disciplined, city-by-city approach.

Across all markets, the priority is the same: build dense, monetisable networks that advertisers can use immediately, not just geographic presence on a map.

5. What challenges do you foresee in entering this market, and how are you preparing to address them?

The biggest challenge in entering new markets is execution speed without losing discipline.

DOOH is operationally complex: securing the right locations, aligning partners, educating advertisers, and building sales momentum at the same time. In markets like Iberia or the US, there’s also the challenge of fragmentation—different buying habits, pricing expectations, and levels of digital maturity.

We prepare for this by starting with focused pilots, not broad rollouts. Each market is validated city by city, with clear performance benchmarks before scaling. We also keep technology, data, and platform control central, while relying on local partners for relationships and execution.

Another challenge is expectation management. We’re careful not to overpromise on reach before density exists.

INDUSTRY IMPACT & FUTURE VISION

1. How do you see AI shaping the future of digital out-of-home advertising over the next five years?

Over the next five years, AI will turn digital out-of-home from a static broadcast medium into a performance-driven channel.

AI will determine when ads run, where budgets are allocated, and which creatives perform best—based on real-world attention patterns, not assumptions. Campaigns will be optimised continuously, not planned once and reviewed at the end.

Just as importantly, AI will open DOOH to smaller advertisers by automating buying, pricing, and optimisation. What once required agencies and long sales cycles will become self-serve and accessible.

The networks that win won’t be the ones with the most screens, but the ones that generate the best data and fastest feedback loops.

Screens are commodities. Intelligence is the moat.

2. What role will real-time analytics and audience data play in how brands communicate in public spaces?

Real-time analytics will fundamentally change how brands communicate in public spaces by making messaging context-aware instead of static.

Rather than running the same creative all day, brands will adjust messages based on factors like time of day, location performance, and audience presence patterns. A coffee brand might promote breakfast in the morning and iced drinks in the afternoon—automatically.

Audience data will guide decision-making, not surveillance. The value isn’t in identifying individuals, but in understanding when and where attention is highest and how messages perform in different contexts.

Public spaces will start to behave more like digital channels: adaptive, measurable, and responsive—without compromising privacy.

Relevance beats reach. Real-time data makes relevance possible.

3. What are your long-term goals for HadsUp globally, and where do you see the company in five years?

I don’t believe in over-planning five years out in a market that’s still evolving.

The focus is to keep building HadsUp into a remarkable, useful product—one that genuinely helps businesses advertise more effectively and enables our ecosystem partners to generate real value using our technology.

If we do that consistently—listening to the market, improving the platform, and executing well—scale and geography will take care of themselves.

4. Finally, what excites you most about the future of HadsUp and its partners?

What excites me most is building an ecosystem that people genuinely believe in and benefit from.

I’ve always been motivated by platforms that opened access and shared value—companies like Uber, Airbnb, or Booking.com didn’t just build technology, they enabled millions of people and businesses to participate in markets that were previously closed.

That’s the same motivation behind HadsUp. We want to give businesses of every size—and the partners who host and operate our network—a fair, simple way to create value together using our technology.

When the ecosystem grows because everyone is winning, that’s when it becomes durable.

MEMBERSHIP IN THE SPAIN-TURKEY CHAMBER OF COMMERCE

1. HadsUp recently joined the Cámara de Comercio España–Turquía. What motivated this decision?

The decision was actually very straightforward. Our local business partners in Iberia suggested it and invited us to join.

As we’re building partnerships and expanding the network in the region, it made sense to be part of an organisation that helps connect businesses, share market insight, and build trust locally. For us, it’s less about formality and more about being close to the people and relationships that matter on the ground.

When you’re growing through partnerships, listening to local partners is usually the right move.

2. How do you see this membership supporting your growth and business relationships?

The value of the membership is in connection and context, not immediate deals.

It helps us build relationships faster, understand how business is done locally, and stay close to the right stakeholders as we grow our presence.

For us, it’s a supporting layer—not a growth engine on its own—but one that strengthens partnerships and reduces friction as the business scales.

Interview with Yücel, Founder of Hadsup.