Reinventing Ad Tech, Criteo’s CEO on Retail Media, AI, and the Future of Addressability

In this episode of Next in Media, Mike Shields sits down with Michael Komasinski, CEO of Criteo, to unpack how one of ad tech’s best-known companies has reinvented itself for a privacy-first world. Once synonymous with retargeting, Criteo has successfully evolved into a powerhouse in retail media, supporting more than 230 retailers and $160 billion in GMV.

Michael shares how the company’s early investments in addressability technology and diversification under Megan Clarkin laid the foundation for long-term resilience. He also discusses the industry’s next big shifts from the end of “easy money” in retail media to the rise of agentic workflows, AI-powered ad optimization, and Criteo’s surprising new partnership with Google.

Key Highlights:

🌐 From Retargeting to Retail Media: How Criteo transformed from a cookie-based ad firm to a retail media leader serving hundreds of partners worldwide.

🔒 Future-Proofing Addressability: Why early investments in weak-signal harvesting and privacy-first tech weren’t wasted, and how they keep Criteo competitive post-cookie.

⚙️ Independent & Neutral: The value of being a tech provider that supports both the sell and buy sides of retail media without owning retail inventory.

📉 “The Easy Money Is Over”: What Criteo’s leadership means by this and why the next growth phase depends on cross-retailer buying, measurement consistency, and reduced friction.

🤖 AI & Agentic Buying: How Criteo is already experimenting with conversational campaign setup through Claude and what that means for SMB advertisers.

📺 CTV and Commerce: Insights on how retail media is converging with connected TV, including a major partnership between Roku, WPP, and Criteo.

🤝 The Google Partnership: Why Criteo’s deal with Google’s SA360 is less surprising than it seems, and what it signals for future ad tech collaboration.

💬 The Open Web Isn’t Dead: Michael’s view on why the web is becoming more efficient, not obsolete, in the age of AI and conversational search.

Resources & Next Steps:

🔗 Learn more about Criteo and its retail media solutions
🎧Subscribe to Next in Media on Apple Podcasts
📺 Explore Next in Media episodes on the evolution of ad tech and retail partnerships
📰 Read Eric Seufert & Andrew Sussman’s analysis on agentic systems and automation