WPP’s recent series of moves, including launching a “large marketing model” and rebranding GroupM, shows they are on the right track for a company on the precipice of generational disruption.

Meta just put a deadline on the Outcomes Era, aiming to fully automate ad creation and targeting with AI by the end of 2025. That means every adtech and media company now faces a simple mandate: prove you deliver incremental, transparent, full-funnel outcomes.

Adtech must stop romanticizing the open web as inherently superior and instead focus on proving it delivers outcomes — because that’s what advertisers actually care about. In the Outcomes Era, the case for the open internet must be grounded in performance, not nostalgia.

Outcomes, AI, creators, and the war between the open internet and the walled gardens were the key themes at DMS by LUMA. Let’s synthesize those trends into a holistic case for the open internet and the adtech companies that represent it.

Taboola is all in on the Outcomes Era, but they’re not alone. A look at their messaging shift highlights why the focus on outcomes is so popular, what its wrinkles are, and how open internet adtech companies can leverage a focus on outcomes to win the war with the walled gardens.

The Trade Desk CEO Jeff Green has gotten loud on LinkedIn recently, transforming from a conspicuous absence to a frequent contributor. But his posts should be more strategic, actively seeking to shift TTD’s reputation in  three ways, and specific, sharing what only one of the most successful adtech entrepreneurs understands about advertising.

Magnite’s headline on their site is "Helping you win across every screen, everywhere." Forgettable and undifferentiated. Instead, the company should lean into its three core differentiators and weave them into a narrative that situates Magnite at the center of the industry — and where it’s heading. Here’s how.

Most advice on early-stage marketing hires is outdated. Founders don’t need a generalist and a few helpers — they need one or two AI-powered supermarketers who can think strategically and ship fast. With the right person, one hire can do the work of a team. Aim higher.

The performance TV thesis is coming to the open web — let’s call it the “performance web” thesis. Here’s why Taboola is adopting that narrative and why I expect other adtech companies to follow suit.

We need to think bigger about the implications of AI for B2B marketing. AI allows you to run the Sharp Pen playbook — building a brand through first-party channels — on a much greater scale, even with fewer people.

AI hasn’t made great marketers obsolete—it’s made average ones impossible to justify. The best marketers aren’t resisting AI; they’re using it to produce more, faster, and better. Employers should judge them on output, not effort, and focus on what AI can’t replace: strategy, relationships, and taste. The bar has risen—top marketers will rise with it.

Google’s “We hear you” approach to adtech has backfired, alienating regulators and the industry. Instead of leading with privacy, it should focus on its real strengths: AI, performance, and CTV. The future isn’t about cookies—it’s about delivering outcomes at scale.

Most product launches go unnoticed. Practices you can use to generate attention and pipeline including tailoring your marketing strategy to the moment, building influence over the long term, and leveraging the CEO as chief evangelist.

If your marketing isn’t working, the blame falls on the CEO. Too many leaders treat marketing as an afterthought, but it directly impacts sales, customer retention, and profitability. The best CEOs develop a clear marketing philosophy, hire industry experts, and actively shape their company’s reputation. Marketing isn’t just a cost—it’s a growth driver.

One of the most urgent questions of the dawning AI era is whether it will be a more closed or open one than the past era dominated by walled gardens. Experiences, monetization, and technical innovation are three of the factors that will determine the answer to that question.

Many adtech companies essentially say, “We drive outcomes” for marketers or publishers. That’s a bad message because it’s undifferentiated. The task is to underscore how you drive outcomes better than your competitors.

AI is reshaping how customers interact with brands, making experiences more interactive, connected across different platforms, and changing the way people research and make buying decisions. As AI tools gather more data and improve recommendations, adtech needs to evolve to take advantage of better targeting and smarter advertising opportunities.

Digital advertising continues to revolve around measurable outcomes, with platforms like Google and Meta leading the charge. While media quality is gaining attention, advertisers remain focused on proving incremental sales, reinforcing the dominance of the Outcomes Era.

2025 is the most exciting moment in adtech in more than a decade. Monopolies that previously seemed impossible to disrupt now seem vulnerable, and we're on the precipice of net new value creation that we haven't seen since the dawn of mobile.

As it leans into ads, Netflix has an opportunity to set the bar for CTV advertising innovation. Three opportunities to consider are in-stream formats, performance TV, and direct deal automation.