Houlihan Lokey Advises Havas
Houlihan Lokey is pleased to announce that Havas, one of the world’s largest global communications groups, has made a strategic investment in Ostro, an AI-powered consumer engagement platform built for the life sciences industry. The terms of the transaction were not disclosed.
Founded in 1835 in Paris, Havas is one of the world’s largest global communications groups, with nearly 23,000 people operating in more than 100 markets and sharing one mission: to make a meaningful difference to brands, businesses, and people. The Havas-Ostro partnership marks a pivotal advancement in Havas’ ongoing transformation agenda, further reinforcing the group’s leadership in data, technology, AI, and personalized content delivery. Through this strategic investment, Havas gains access to Ostro’s platform across its entire global ecosystem. It will support Havas Health Network clients, with plans to expand across Havas Creative and Media Networks, fueling smarter content workflows, omnichannel activations, and enhanced media precision. Together, Havas and Ostro will unlock new opportunities for life sciences companies to move beyond awareness toward engagement that is adaptive, intelligent, and agentic.
Founded in 2019, Ostro is a Miami-based software company dedicated to helping life sciences brands create meaningful interactions that drive better outcomes. Through its innovative technology, Ostro serves as the AI interface connecting life science companies with the medical community, enabling organizations to seamlessly engage with patients, caregivers, and healthcare providers in personalized and impactful ways that drive increased ROI. Ostro’s award-winning platform is trusted by a majority of the top 10 global biopharma companies, with adoption accelerating both within the top 10 and across midsized pharma and emerging biotech. Ostro’s rapid expansion is driven by its ability to seamlessly integrate into both branded and unbranded HCP and patient digital experiences, enabling dynamic, agent-led personalized engagement—all while meeting compliance and regulatory standards in full, and with implementation in eight weeks or less.
Houlihan Lokey served as the exclusive financial advisor to Havas. This deal highlights Houlihan Lokey’s leading experience in the pharma commercialization space and represents the firm’s 30th transaction in this sector since 2019.