16 April 2025

AI in Ad Tech creating new opportunities

In summary

• The shift away from third-party cookies is driving the adoption of AI-powered predictive models in Ad Tech
• AI’s integration with cloud infrastructure and first-party data is enhancing advertising performance, but its success depends on high-quality data and clear understanding of AI outputs.
• As AI adoption grows, businesses must balance innovation with robust governance and privacy compliance, staying informed on regulatory changes and ensuring responsible use of data.

The catalyst for change

The industry shift away from third party cookies was a massive anchor for change leading Ad Tech platforms to rethink their propositions fast. Determinist measurement is no longer the status quo and we are starting to see the pivot to AI powered predictive models designed to fill in the gaps where third party cookies once used to be the connective tissue.

The future of AI-based ad products

AI advertising products and features have been at the forefront of change across the Ad Tech industry for some time. The day-to-day consumer impact of AI has not only changed how we research and plan small things like our next holiday, but the introduction of AI is improving programmatic mechanisms to leverage first party data and known bidding identifiers based on agentic decisioning. We are moving away from an auction cookie matching world, to a reliance on AI decisioning where identity is increasingly probabilistic and content is more dynamic.

Walled gardens have been doing for this successfully for sometime now with AI-developed advertising products such as Performance Max, Advantage plus and Performance plus, becoming more mature in market. The AI feature rollout across these products has proved superior given the use of owned and operated identity graphs that provide a scaled basis for prediction and modelling.

The future of DSPs has also been called into question with the release of new technologies such as Scope3’s Agentic AI platform, as human decision-making in media supply increasingly gives way to AI-driven automation. Inevitably, the role of the human trader will decrease as real time decisions shift from set taxonomies and predefined segments to page content. This opens the door for AI to become the driving force behind quality and sustainability.

AI in Google Marketing Platform

There have been multiple AI inclusions within Google Marketing Platform (GMP), making it easier for marketers and agencies to streamline operations, reduce complexity and maximise performance outcomes.

• Display & Video 360 (DV360): optimised targeting, auto bidding, custom bidding, audience expansion (YouTube)
• Search Ads 360 (SA360): Performance Max, cross engine smart bidding, forecasting tools
• Google Analytics (GA): predictive purchase probability and revenue prediction

These feature introductions will continue to play a role in the development of AI powered products that are designed to drive performance and enhance the measurability of campaigns.

Convergence of cloud, measurement and AI

Cloud infrastructures have become critical in the collection of data storing and processing. Some of the areas where brands are utilising cloud storage is through the adoption of server-side tag management for greater control of data flows and improved measurement across environments leading to greater performance outcomes.

This gradual convergence highlights the need for the unified connection of ‘business data’ becoming critical for governance and long term use within Ad Tech platforms for informed and strategic approaches to advertising.

So, where does AI fit into all this?

It starts with leveraging business data for appropriate use cases - AI will only be as good as the data that’s running behind it. Training data sets that are relevant to business goals and understanding the output of AI models are just as critical to success as the AI technology itself.

There is still a long way to go before the robots take over and, right now, AI is still very nascent and Louder does not recommend putting all your eggs into the AI basket just yet.

AI governance remains a grey area

Like many disruptive technologies, the governance and policy around AI and its use is still forming.

Last year, The Office of the Australian Information Commissioner (OAIC) provided some preliminary guidance on privacy and the use of commercially available AI products.

Key highlights of this guidance include:

• Businesses should update privacy policies to include clear and transparent notifications about the use of AI
• Privacy obligations will apply to any personal information being input into AI systems and outputs generated
• If personal information is being used in AI systems, it is required to only use information that has been disclosed for primary purpose

AI is here now and, whether we like it or not.

Its adoption is manifesting itself in many different ways across multiple industries. All aspects of media planning and buying are feeling the impacts, not just ad buying platforms.

As the entire industry navigates profound disruption, staying informed will be the key to identifying AI opportunities that can improve creative execution, CRMs, SEO, and product life cycles. As you become more informed, start to identify what technologies will work for your business and help to increase efficiencies.

Louder’s recommendation

• Explore and experiment - Continue to adopt AI features where possible. These are designed to improved signal strength and performance quality, so find out if these are really having the desired impact on your advertising dollars.
• Stay informed - With so much change happening across the industry and a shifting government view on privacy, it’s important to keep up to date with regulatory guidance first before making any major steps into meshing ‘business data’ and AI.
• Be bold, but don’t be brash - There are many advantages to being first to market with shiny new toys, so it’s incumbent on brands to innovate to keep up with AI tools. However, putting guardrails on the use of data and associated governance are equally important.

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