Artificial Intelligence

Meta’s Q1 call sounded like an AI and hardware pitch, but under the hood it was still about one thing: investing in AI to squeeze more money out of its ads business.

Buyers want a single, coherent view of reach and performance across programmatic. But for publishers, the operational reality is quite messy. Trusted Media Brand is using AI to clean it up.

AI search is cautiously testing competitor-targeted ads; publishers’ prediction widgets risk backlash despite engagement gains; and Trump library donations from media companies face transparency questions.

Kim Rosenblum, CMO of investment app Betterment, unpacks her “anti‑marketing” playbook, which involves telling customers not to engage and shifting away from chasing cheap CAC to prioritizing lifetime value.

Local media companies have already seen traffic declines of 25% to 50%, and the Local Media Consortium is collaborating to fight the problem.

IAPP’s Global Summit in DC was a reminder that AI is moving fast – and judges, privacy lawyers and practitioner are racing to keep up.

As we head further into 2026, the biggest risk for marketing orgs isn’t choosing the wrong AI – it’s letting “AI perfectionism” delay decisions so long that no decision gets made at all.

Audience preferences are constantly evolving. So why not ads that evolve in real time, too? No, really.

The advertising industry is full of noise about AI making buy-side and sell-side processes more efficient. That framing is convenient, but it misses a broader point, writes Snowflake’s Dennis Buchheim.

Realtor.com is working with AI marketing startup BrandComms.AI to generate ad creative more quickly and across a wider array of channels.

Your TL;DR on MCP, the open standard that lets AI models connect to tools, remember context and run workflows across platforms.

Inclusive measurement is more than a nice-to-have, says Charlene Polite Corley, Nielsen’s VP of inclusive insights. Because undercounting Black, Hispanic and intersectional audiences isn’t just a measurement failure; it’s a missed growth opportunity for brands.

Submit your comic caption idea by 5 p.m. ET on Mon., March 9, 2026 for the chance to win a free ticket to Programmatic AI in Las Vegas!

Ad verification used to be mostly about keeping brands away from the bad stuff. Now, verification providers have to prove that quality actually moves the needle, says Integral Ad Science CEO Lisa Utzschneider.

The future of publishing won’t be defined by where content lives, but by how it’s created, licensed, distributed and valued, writes David Kohl.

As companies rush to roll out “helpful” AI bots, they’re inadvertently giving those agents broad access to sensitive data and opening the door to leaks.

OpenAI launched ads this week, making ChatGPT the newest canvas for advertising. But not before its biggest competitor, Anthropic, lambasted the decision in a Super Bowl ad.

Meta is channeling its booming ad revenue into a $135 billion AI drive to power its “personal superintelligence” future.

Enjoy this weekly comic strip from AdExchanger.com that highlights the digital advertising ecosystem … 

Enjoy this weekly comic strip from AdExchanger.com that highlights the digital advertising ecosystem … 

AdExchanger, part of the Chief Marketer Network, is launching Programmatic AI, a new spring industry event debuting May 18–20, 2026, in Las Vegas.

From headline to punchline, AdExchanger’s weekly comics distill ad tech industry news into something our readers can laugh about. These are our faves of the year.

The Economist is charting its own course in the age of AI, says Nada Arnot, the 182-year-old publication’s EVP of marketing. It’s steering clear of licensing deals and lawsuits and partnering with Claude on its own terms.

Marketers know that quality matters – and here’s yet more proof. But breaking old habits in digital media is easier said than done.

AI hype is everywhere, but Moloco CEO Ikkjin Ahn says the real winners in ad tech will be those who can move beyond flashy demos and harness AI at true hyperscale.

Meet Guideline, a marketing intelligence platform that aggregates anonymized agency billing data to generate data-driven insights on media spend, pricing and market trends.

Enjoy this weekly comic from AdExchanger.com that highlights the digital advertising ecosystem … 

Jeff Cohen, Skai’s new chief business development officer, unpacks why the smartest retailers and brands are already connecting the data dots and rethinking their playbooks for the AI era, even though the shopping bots aren’t quite there yet.

AI is bringing accountability to ad tech’s murky middle, helping brands like EssilorLuxottica cut out bots, bad bids and wasted spend before a single impression runs.

Tony Stubblebine became CEO of Medium in 2022 and turned the struggling, loss-making platform profitable by cutting costs, improving content quality and refusing to rely on advertising.