Serial entrepreneur and advertising mogul Gary Vaynerchuk has transformed his holding company VaynerX into a $300 million revenue powerhouse, with the company on track to exceed that milestone in 2024. Most impressively, VaynerX has more than doubled its revenue over the past five years, significantly outpacing the broader advertising industry’s growth during a period of major disruption.
Vaynerchuk, who built his empire by helping major brands like PepsiCo and Mondelez capitalize on social media trends, has expanded VaynerX far beyond its social media marketing roots. The company now encompasses multiple disciplines including retail media buying, TV advertising, and a consulting arm that advises direct-to-consumer startups. The consulting division, launched in 2022, now represents 10% of total revenue and is one of the company’s fastest-growing segments.
International expansion has been another key growth driver, with VaynerX now operating from New York to Singapore and employing nearly 2,000 people—up from approximately 800 in 2019. International work now accounts for 20% of revenue, with particular focus on Asia-Pacific and Latin America markets.
As the advertising industry faces potential disruption from generative AI technology that threatens to automate traditional agency work, Vaynerchuk has positioned himself as an AI thought leader. Rather than viewing AI as either a threat or a panacea, he advocates for a balanced approach. He urges business leaders to avoid extremes—neither demonizing AI as harmful to humanity nor over-relying on it as a complete solution.
Vaynerchuk encourages clients to see AI’s potential beyond cost savings, focusing instead on how the technology can help brands earn views and engagement on social media platforms. “They’re agnostic, whether that’s an AI piece of creative or a human piece of creative,” he explained. “They just want to get the awareness and the consideration and the relevancy.”
Despite the AI revolution, social marketing remains central to VaynerX’s identity. A notable 2023 success was helping PepsiCo revitalize Mug Root Beer by suggesting innovative uses like ramen and boba tea recipes, then using social-first strategies to test and scale winning content. Vaynerchuk projects VaynerX’s revenue will double again in the next five years, even as traditional creative agencies continue to shrink.
Key Quotes
Don’t demonize it, like, ‘We’ll never do AI; that’s bad for humanity.’ Or the other way: ‘Oh great, we don’t need to do anything else; AI will take care of it.’ So, let’s not get too high on it. Let’s not get too low on it.
Gary Vaynerchuk articulates his balanced philosophy on AI adoption, positioning himself as a moderate voice in an industry facing major technological disruption. This middle-ground approach has helped VaynerX navigate the AI revolution while continuing to grow.
We talk about it from internal and external efficiencies of course, but clients are starting to understand the big game, which is, ‘How do you earn views in social?’ And they’re agnostic, whether that’s an AI piece of creative or a human piece of creative. They just want to get the awareness and the consideration and the relevancy.
Vaynerchuk explains how his clients are shifting their perspective on AI, moving beyond cost-cutting to focus on performance. This quote reveals how AI-generated content is now competing directly with human creativity based purely on results.
The creative agencies are shrinking — holding companies downsize every year. It’s not a healthy business. Nobody knows what works.
Industry consultant Michael Farmer provides context on the broader advertising landscape, highlighting why VaynerX’s growth is so remarkable. His assessment underscores the existential challenges traditional agencies face as AI and other disruptions reshape the industry.
Our Take
VaynerX’s success story reveals a critical truth about surviving the AI revolution: adaptation beats resistance. While traditional agencies shrink and struggle to define their value proposition, Vaynerchuk has positioned his company at the intersection of social media expertise and AI innovation. His pragmatic approach—treating AI as a tool rather than a replacement for human creativity—offers a sustainable model for the creative industries.
What’s particularly noteworthy is Vaynerchuk’s results-agnostic philosophy regarding AI versus human-created content. This signals a fundamental shift in how creative work will be evaluated going forward. The question is no longer “who made it?” but “does it work?” This performance-first mindset could accelerate AI adoption across creative industries while simultaneously raising the bar for human creativity. The real competitive advantage may lie not in choosing between AI and humans, but in orchestrating both effectively—exactly what VaynerX appears to be doing.
Why This Matters
This story highlights how forward-thinking advertising agencies are adapting to the AI revolution rather than being disrupted by it. While traditional ad agencies face declining revenues and workforce reductions, VaynerX’s explosive growth demonstrates that companies embracing AI as a creative tool—rather than viewing it as a threat—can thrive in the new landscape.
Vaynerchuk’s balanced approach to AI adoption offers a blueprint for businesses navigating technological transformation. His philosophy of avoiding both AI extremism and AI denial reflects a pragmatic middle path that many industries must follow. As generative AI threatens to automate creative work, VaynerX’s success shows that human creativity combined with AI tools can deliver superior results.
The story also signals a broader shift in marketing, where AI-generated content competes directly with human-created content based purely on performance metrics. This agnostic approach—caring only about results, not the creation method—may become the industry standard. For the 2,000 employees at VaynerX and millions of marketing professionals worldwide, this represents both opportunity and challenge as AI reshapes creative workflows and job requirements.
Recommended Reading
For those interested in learning more about artificial intelligence, machine learning, and effective AI communication, here are some excellent resources: