Marketecture: Get Smart. Fast.

Paul Knegten, a former CMO of Beeswax and ad tech marketing leader, shares his insights on the evolving landscape of marketing heading into 2026. He emphasizes that AI alone can't fix poor positioning and discusses the rising importance of founder-led communication over traditional brand messaging. Paul points out that buyers prioritize performance over transparency and reveals how many companies misdiagnose marketing challenges as product-market fit issues. He also highlights LinkedIn and major industry events as crucial channels for reaching decision-makers.

Erez Levin, a former Googler and media futurist, dives deep into the nuances of media quality in advertising. He explains why short-term results can be misleading and emphasizes that not all impressions carry the same weight. Erez discusses the impact of misclassified video formats and how current incentives skew spending towards lower-quality impressions. He encourages a reevaluation of quality through long-term effectiveness and shares insights into how verification and proper experimentation can reshape the media landscape.

At CES, Tim and Chris Vanderhook explain Viant's Lattice Brain, an AI-driven system that automates ad optimization. They reveal how automated campaigns outperformed human-managed ones by eliminating decision latency. Their unique workflow, Outcomes, sets advertising goals and optimizes performance in real-time, providing transparency but limiting control over tweaks. As they anticipate a mix of manual and automated strategies, they liken Outcomes' speed to that of a cheetah, showcasing the efficiency of tech over traditional methods.

In this engaging conversation, Mike Khristo, Founder and CEO of Layers, shares his insights on automating marketing for developers. He introduces the concept of 'vibe coding,' where non-professionals can create viable apps with the help of AI tools. The discussion dives into effective marketing strategies, emphasizing organic growth and App Store Optimization as vital for visibility. Mike also predicts a surge in niche apps tailored for specific communities, empowering more individuals to develop and market their creations without extensive technical backgrounds.

Khurrum Malik, VP of Business and Product Marketing at Walmart Connect, dives into the evolution of retail media's landscape. Discover how Walmart Connect is reshaping advertising with a focus on incremental sales impact, moving beyond traditional search strategies. He unveils the exciting 'couch to cart' connection enabled by Vizio's CTV and emphasizes the importance of new measurement standards like incrementality. Khurrum also teases AI-driven tools and benchmarks that position Walmart Connect as a leader in the retail media space.

Jayson Dubin, Founder and CEO of Playwire, shares insights on blending machine learning with human intelligence to enhance publisher performance. He unveils the RAMP platform, designed to unify traffic shaping and optimize revenue. Jayson highlights impressive results: AI traffic shaping boosts revenue per session by 21%, while price flooring enhances RPM by 20%. He discusses industry challenges like supply chain transparency and the rise of AI-driven discovery, stressing the importance of maintaining trust in advertising.

Join Ari and Eric as they reflect on a transformative year in ad tech. They discuss the explosive growth of their platform and review predictions with surprising accuracy. Key takeaways include the rise of agentic AI, the dynamic between YouTube and Netflix as streaming giants, and the strengthening competition in in-app advertising. Dive into the impact of strategic M&A in the industry and what to expect for the future, especially regarding content marketplaces and CTV evolution.

In this engaging discussion, Dr. Mark Grether, SVP & General Manager at PayPal, reveals how PayPal is revolutionizing retail media through its vast transaction graph, encompassing 30 million merchants and 400 million consumers. He highlights the launch of the SMB Ads Manager, designed to help small businesses monetize their traffic. Venmo's social feed takes center stage as a powerful ad inventory for Gen Z, while Honey's insights bridge discovery and checkout. The concept of agentic commerce showcases PayPal as the trust layer in online transactions.

Scott Spencer, co-founder of Rewarded Interest and ex-Google product leader, dives into the failure of cookie banners, revealing that only 16% of users feel in control. He discusses the need for centralized, programmatic privacy settings to empower consumers across devices. Scott emphasizes the risk of ad blocking if the industry doesn't adapt and shares his regret about not fully appreciating the human impact of his work on Real-Time Bidding. Tune in for insights on privacy, consent, and the future of ad tech!

Andrew Casale, CEO of Index Exchange, and Megan Pagliuca, Chief Product Officer at Omnicom Media Group, dive into the game-changing world of programmatic advertising in live sports. They discuss how to make sports content more addressable with real-time targeting on 'magic moments' and the importance of new standards like podding to prevent ad request spikes. The duo also explores faster sell-side decisioning, the potential for modular supply chains to reduce fees, and exciting AI advancements that enhance creative workflows.