Futuri Adds Two To Senior Leadership

Futuri, a provider of AI-driven audience engagement and sales intelligence technology for media, today announced two new senior leaders on its team who are focused on developing its suite of offerings for local, network, and cable television and digital publishers. Futuri’s AI-powered software for media includes TopicPulse, the story discovery and social content system that uses predictive AI to get ahead of topics trending with local audiences, and Post, Futuri’s enterprise podcasting system.

Tim Wolff joins Futuri as vice president, TV and digital publishing innovation. In this newly created position, Wolff will guide Futuri’s product strategy for TV and digital publishing solutions, translate user feedback into actionable product guidance, and develop R&D studies and content related to technology innovation in this space.

Wolff is a digital and broadcasting leader who’s led top-performing TV and digital publishing teams. In Wolff’s 20-plus years of experience, he’s held content executive roles at stations including KSDK-TV St Louis; WHAS-TV Louisville, Ky.; and WHIO-TV Dayton, Ohio. Wolff joins Futuri from Cox Media Group Ohio, where he oversaw digital for one of the country’s only converged newsrooms. His group included three daily newspapers, three radio stations, WHIO-TV, Dayton.com, and several other digital products.

Tom Raponi joins the Futuri board of advisors. He will advise on strategy for Futuri’s content, audience, and revenue AI for TV broadcasters. Raponi is a veteran of the broadcast space, having spent the bulk of his 39-year career in VP-general manager and senior-level sales management roles at major-market stations, including WFXT Boston and KTVU-KICU San Francisco. During his career, Raponi has worked extensively with news, marketing, and sales research. Before starting his media career with Katz Communications in 1979, Raponi was signed to a professional contract with the Detroit Tigers.

“TV broadcasters and digital publishers are all struggling to grow their content, audience, and revenue, and Futuri technology has been proven to deliver results on all fronts,” said Futuri CEO Daniel Anstandig. “Adding the considerable skill, experience, and insight of Tim Wolff and Tom Raponi to our team is a privilege, as Futuri solutions become even more essential and helpful to the TV broadcasting and digital publishing industries.”

“Futuri has elegant solutions that cut through the BS to fix real problems in TV broadcasting and digital publishing. They have a spirit and ethos of working with journalists to help them create stronger connections with their community,” said Wolff. “Working with Daniel Anstandig and the Futuri team, I can use my experience and knowledge to help not just one newsroom, but newsrooms around the country.”

“Senior leaders in the TV business are in a challenging time where growing content, audience, and revenue requires the ability to combine the science of predictive AI and research with the art of storytelling to maximize their results and stay relevant,” said Raponi. “Driving growth for its partners is core to what Futuri and Daniel Anstandig do every day, and I’m thrilled to join the team and help drive growth for the TV industry.”