AdExchanger

Americans are dealing with tumultuous change. For an ecommerce ad agency, that means navigating the same tariff craziness, the Meta ad platform going haywire, seeing Temu ads pulled from the US market and AI solutions making a bid to replace human agency services.

In 2017, Mediaocean CEO Bill Wise predicted the demise of supply-side platforms. The category survived, but he’s sticking to his theory that pureplay SSPs are a thing of the past. Plus: An update on Mediaocean’s $550 million Innovid acquisition and Wise’s counterpoint to recent criticisms of The Trade Desk.

AI isn’t something a marketer “does.” It’s not a singular action or task, and there is no AI easy button. And so AI researcher and consultant Cecilia Dones tries to “get underneath” the reasons behind why marketers want to integrate AI into their businesses.

To say that David Jones, CEO and founder of The Brandtech Group, is bullish on generative AI would be an understatement. “Every single facet of marketing can be done better, faster and cheaper using technology and AI,” Jones says. “I’d rather have a fast, efficient machine than a slow, grumpy creative with a big ego.” Tune in for more zingers.

As the newly appointed president of Horizon Media Holdings, Bob Lord is dubious that megamergers between holding companies are actually good for the client. “Bigger is not always better,” Lord says.