"When Lunos, an AI startup in New York City, was gearing up for launch, its founder and chief executive, Duncan Barrigan, and his team wanted to make a splash. So they shelled out $3,500 to do the unconventional: hire a horse and a cowboy to lasso the bull of Wall Street. On a sweltering evening in late September, the cowboy galloped toward the iconic sculpture in lower Manhattan."
"The goal was simple: deliver Lunos's pitch of taming the wild west of accounts receivables in the most literal, public way possible. The startup uses AI to automate invoices, track balances and follow up on payments. We were trying to figure out in a sea of sameness how we could stand out as a startup to be reckoned with, said Alex Mann, Lunos's head of growth."
"Many AI companies geared towards businesses have relied on hype-filled messaging delivered through predictable channels like trade shows, white papers, billboards and digital ads. A live stunt in front of the Wall Street bull represents a departure in form that can feel oddly out of sync with the conventional back-office software these companies build. The stunt reflects a broader shift among AI companies turning to provocative marketing to stand out in an overcrowded, capital-rich sector."
Lunos, an AI startup in New York City, hired a horse and cowboy for $3,500 to lasso the Wall Street bull as a public marketing stunt aimed at standing out. The company uses AI to automate invoices, track balances and follow up on payments. With more than 90,000 AI companies worldwide, many businesses offering similar automation face difficulty differentiating by product alone. Business-focused AI firms have relied on trade shows, white papers, billboards and digital ads, prompting some to adopt provocative experiential marketing. In 2025, AI startups raised roughly $202.3bn globally while generative AI apps' digital ad spending exceeded $200m in Q2.
Read at www.theguardian.com
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