What Is Hotwire, the Technology PR Agency Owned by Enero?

Originally published July 2018. Updated November 4, 2026.

Hotwire is a global technology communications and marketing consultancy founded in 2000 and owned by Australia's Enero Group. Grant Toups became global CEO in January 2026, succeeding Heather Kernahan. Hotwire Global includes the Hotwire PR business and the digital marketing firm ROI·DNA, and Enero said in August 2026 that it is integrating the two more closely as technology clients change how they buy marketing work.

Key takeaways

• Hotwire was founded in 2000 and marked its 25th anniversary in 2025.
• Enero Group owns Hotwire and built the business through acquisitions in 2016, 2021 and 2022.
• Grant Toups has been global CEO since January 2026, after leadership roles at Burson and Hill & Knowlton.
• Enero described Hotwire as a business in transition in August 2026, with net revenue down 19% to A$63.3 million for the year to June.
• Enero reports in Australian dollars, so all revenue figures on this page are in A$ unless stated.

What are the key facts about Hotwire?

The table summarizes Hotwire's company profile as of November 2026.

Directory counts of staff differ. Hotwire's November 2025 announcement described more than 400 people in 11 countries, while O'Dwyer's current listing shows 258 people across 14 offices, so treat any headcount as a point-in-time figure.

What is Hotwire?

Hotwire is a global technology communications and marketing consultancy founded in 2000. It spans the Hotwire PR business and ROI·DNA, a digital and performance marketing firm, and it is owned by Australia's Enero Group. Its tagline, used in its 25th anniversary announcement, is to make the technical irresistible.

Who leads Hotwire?

Grant Toups leads Hotwire Global as global chief executive, a role he assumed in January 2026 after being named in November 2025. Trade coverage says he previously served as global chief digital and intelligence officer at Burson and was Hill & Knowlton's first global chief technology officer. Enero CEO Ian Ball called him a proven international leader at the forefront of comms-tech, AI and marketing transformation.

He succeeded Heather Kernahan, who had been global CEO since 2021 and whose departure O'Dwyer's reported in May 2025. Kernahan followed Barbara Bates, who led Hotwire for five years after Enero acquired Bates's San Francisco agency, Eastwick, in 2016, per PRovoke Media. In May 2026 Toups wrote a partner-content piece for PRWeek's Agency Business Report on what modern communications demands, and Enero said in August 2026 it was in the final stages of appointing a new leader for the US business.

Who owns Hotwire and how has it grown through acquisition?

The Enero Group owns Hotwire and has built its technology business through three acquisitions.

1. September 2016: Enero bought Eastwick Communications, according to O'Dwyer's.
2. 2021: Hotwire acquired London-based McDonald Butler Associates for an initial £3.5 million plus deferred payments, per PRovoke Media.
3. 2022: Enero announced the purchase of San Francisco's ROI DNA and Asia-Pacific agency GetIT for a combined US$37.5 million in cash and shares, per Campaign Asia, giving Hotwire its first owned offices in Asia.

How is Hotwire performing financially?

Hotwire's results have come under pressure from a changing technology market, according to Enero's own reporting. Enero reports in Australian dollars, and its ASX results announcement for the year to June 2025 said Hotwire revenue declined 4% to A$78.6 million. Hotwire Global's first-quarter FY26 revenue (July to September 2025) was A$17.3 million, down 11% from A$19.5 million a year earlier, as Mumbrella reported. AdNews reported in August 2026 that net revenue for the year to June fell 19% to A$63.3 million, and that Ball described Hotwire as a business in transition.

Period	Reported result (A$)	Source
FY25 (year to June 2025)	Revenue down 4% to A$78.6 million	Enero ASX announcement, August 29, 2025
Q1 FY26 (July to September 2025)	Revenue A$17.3 million, down 11% from A$19.5 million	Mumbrella, citing Enero
H1 FY26 (to December 2025)	Group EBITDA up 15% and net profit up 119%, with Hotwire's transformation and Toups' arrival cited	LBB, citing Enero
FY26 (year to June 2026)	Hotwire net revenue down 19% to A$63.3 million	AdNews
FY27 outlook	Enero forecast ROI·DNA revenue 30% to 50% below its recent run rate as clients use AI for work they once outsourced	AdNews

The currency is confirmed from Enero's ASX listing and from data vendors that list its financials in Australian dollars, and the FY26 decline is consistent with the FY25 base. The FY25 figure is labeled revenue and the FY26 figure net revenue, so the two may not be strictly comparable. The strategic response, according to Enero, is closer integration of Hotwire and ROI·DNA and a push into AI advisory. Hotwire launched an annual AI report with House of Beautiful Business at the World Economic Forum in Davos in January 2026 and cited rising demand for AI products and advisory services.

What does Hotwire do?

Hotwire provides technology-focused communications and marketing built around what it calls reputation, relationship and revenue programs. The McDonald Butler Associates acquisition added account-based marketing, industry marketing and channel and alliances programs, and ROI·DNA added performance marketing. Coverage of the Toups appointment says the group is also building expertise in AI, predictive data intelligence and generative engine optimization.

Which clients has Hotwire worked with?

Hotwire and McDonald Butler Associates shared clients including Adobe, Citrix and Dell Technologies when the 2021 deal was announced. ROI·DNA's clients include AWS Marketplace, Loom, Cockroach Labs, Elastic and Salesforce, and Mediaweek reported that it won its largest-ever client, Qualtrics, in 2025. Hotwire published new case studies for Denodo, Finwave and Multiverse in August 2026, according to a company profile on YesPress.

How does Hotwire compare with other technology PR firms?

Hotwire is a network-owned specialist, so it sits between boutiques and the global holding-company agencies in the PR agency profiles directory. To compare it with 18 other firms, see EPR's best tech PR agencies in 2026, where Hotwire is ranked seventh. For the wider market, see EPR's technology PR and financial services PR sections, the Edelman profile for a global generalist, and the Wise Public Relations profile for a New York boutique with technology roots.

A technology company evaluating Hotwire should ask how its PR and performance marketing teams now work together, who leads the US business after the pending appointment, and how its AI advisory work is priced and measured.

Related: Best tech PR agencies 2026, PR agency profiles, Technology PR, Financial services PR, Edelman, Wise Public Relations