Ad Tech Navigates AI and CTV Boom Amidst Market Volatility

Thursday, 14 May 20268 min read1 views

The global ad tech sector experienced a quarter of varied performance, with significant investor interest in Artificial Intelligence and Connected TV (CTV) driving optimism. However, underlying market pressures and economic uncertainties continue to shape the industry's landscape, creating a complex environment for growth.

What Happened

•Investor confidence surged in ad tech companies leveraging AI and CTV technologies, signaling these as key growth areas.
•Despite positive sentiment in specific segments, the broader ad tech market faced mixed financial results for the quarter.
•Companies with strong AI integration reported robust performance, attracting substantial capital.
•Connected TV platforms continued to draw significant advertising spend and strategic investment.
•Underlying economic tensions and market volatility persisted, influencing overall ad tech sector stability.
•Source: Digiday, 14 May 2026

Why It Matters for NZ Marketers

•NZ marketers must evaluate their ad tech stack for AI capabilities to remain competitive in a rapidly evolving digital landscape.
•The growth of CTV presents a significant opportunity for reaching New Zealand audiences with targeted, measurable campaigns.
•Investment in AI tools can enhance campaign optimisation, audience segmentation, and creative generation for NZ brands.
•Understanding global ad tech trends helps NZ agencies and brands prepare for incoming technological shifts and competitive pressures.
•Local ad tech providers may see increased demand for AI-driven solutions and CTV integration, or face challenges from global competitors.
•NZ media buyers need to adapt strategies to leverage CTV's growing reach, moving beyond traditional linear TV models.

Strategic Implications

•Prioritise investment in AI-powered marketing tools to improve efficiency, personalisation, and return on ad spend.
•Develop comprehensive CTV advertising strategies, exploring programmatic buying and data-driven targeting opportunities.
•Assess current ad tech partnerships to ensure they offer scalable AI and CTV solutions aligned with future growth.
•Upskill marketing teams in AI applications and CTV campaign management to maximise new technology adoption.
•Focus on first-party data strategies to fuel AI models and enhance targeting capabilities across all digital channels, including CTV.
•Monitor global ad tech M&A activity for potential impacts on local service availability and innovation.

Future Trend Signals

•Increased convergence of AI and programmatic advertising, leading to more autonomous campaign management.
•Accelerated shift of advertising budgets from linear TV to CTV, driven by advanced targeting and measurement capabilities.
•Further consolidation within the ad tech industry as companies acquire AI and CTV expertise.
•Development of more sophisticated AI-driven creative optimisation and content generation tools for advertising.

Sources

By the numbers: Ad tech’s quarter of mixed fortunes — Digiday

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