Hyperscience

Repositioning an AI automation platform to compete with category giants

The challenge
Hyperscience had a problem familiar to fast-scaling startups: the brand hadn't kept pace with the business. By 2022, they were competing directly with UiPath and Automation Anywhere for enterprise deals, but their positioning didn't communicate what made them genuinely different.

The discovery phase
Stink Studios was appointed to develop new brand positioning, messaging, and visual identity. Working with Head of Strategy Tom Barnes, we conducted stakeholder and customer interviews across the business - including founder Peter Brodsky, CEO Charlie Newark-French, head of product, head of marketing, and crucially, actual platform users who had strong opinions about what set Hyperscience apart.

The insight
The breakthrough came from those user interviews: while competitors sold "automation" as replacing humans, Hyperscience customers valued how the platform kept humans in the loop - using AI to augment human judgment, not eliminate it. In a market increasingly anxious about AI replacing jobs, this was a powerful differentiator hiding in plain sight.

Positioning + Messaging
We built the entire repositioning around "Human-in-the-Loop" - positioning Hyperscience not as another RPA tool, but as the human-centered approach to intelligent automation. I developed the brand's first tone of voice and copy guidelines, along with the messaging hierarchy that translated this positioning across every touchpoint - from the confident, human-centered headlines ("Machine Learning, Humans Teaching") to enterprise sales materials and lead generation content.

The outcome
Three years on, Hyperscience still leads with this positioning. They've since been named a Forrester Wave Leader, raised $439M in funding, and count American Express, Charles Schwab, and HMRC among their clients.