Agentic AI and channel bets in advertising and CTV

The ongoing convergence of agentic AI and emerging channel bets like Connected TV (CTV) is accelerating a profound transformation in performance marketing and advertising measurement. Recent funding surges and strategic innovations underscore how startups and SaaS providers are racing to harness AI-driven automation and next-generation media platforms, reshaping how brands optimize campaigns, measure impact, and engage audiences in an increasingly fragmented ecosystem.

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Agentic AI’s Growing Role in Real-Time Campaign Optimization

Plurio’s recent $3.5 million funding round signals robust investor confidence in the promise of agentic AI to revolutionize performance marketing. Unlike static dashboards or conventional analytics tools, Plurio’s platform deploys autonomous AI agents that continuously analyze vast data streams, optimize campaign parameters, and execute adjustments in real time across multiple channels. This shift enables marketers to focus on strategic decision-making while AI tackles the complexity and speed requirements of modern campaigns.

Key features of agentic AI in this context include:

• Autonomous data analysis and execution: AI agents reduce latency between insight and action, allowing campaigns to adapt dynamically to shifting consumer behaviors and market signals.
• Multi-channel orchestration: The platform synchronizes spend and messaging across diverse media, including digital, social, and CTV, maximizing ROI.
• Continuous learning and adaptation: AI models refine themselves in production, improving outcomes without manual intervention.

Plurio exemplifies how agentic AI transcends traditional marketing technology, positioning AI as an active collaborator rather than a passive tool.

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AI-Driven Ads as the New Competitive "Land Grab"

Industry thought leaders have characterized the rise of AI-powered advertising as a “land grab”, emphasizing the urgency for brands and agencies to adopt AI-driven tactics rapidly. A recent tactical commentary highlights several critical dimensions of this competitive race:

• Speed and agility are paramount: Early adopters of AI-driven campaign deployment capture outsized market share by responding faster to market signals.
• Automation builds defensibility: Proprietary AI frameworks, data assets, and operational infrastructure create moats that fend off competitors.
• Human-plus-machine synergy remains essential: The best outcomes arise when human creativity and strategic insight complement AI’s analytical power, rather than ceding full control to algorithms.
• Cross-channel coordination: Effective AI systems seamlessly manage campaigns across emerging channels, ensuring optimized spend and cohesive messaging.

This “land grab” reflects a broader ecosystem shift where control over consumer attention, real-time measurement, and attribution data in channels like CTV becomes a critical competitive frontier.

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Connected TV (CTV): The Next Frontier for Advertising and Measurement Innovation

Connected TV has emerged as a key battleground for advertising innovation and measurement sophistication. With CTV platforms proliferating, advertisers face unique challenges:

• Traditional cookie-based tracking is less applicable in CTV’s walled gardens.
• Attribution requires integrating offline signals and cross-device data.
• New engagement metrics—such as viewing duration and interactive behaviors—offer richer insights than clicks or impressions alone.

SaaS players like HockeyStack are pioneering tools designed to navigate these complexities. Their approach includes:

• Developing advanced attribution models tailored for CTV’s fragmented environment.
• Balancing data integration with privacy compliance, navigating evolving regulatory landscapes.
• Establishing strategic partnerships with CTV platform owners and data providers to unlock comprehensive measurement capabilities.

This strategic focus underscores a wider industry consensus that CTV will drive significant future ad spend growth, requiring marketers to rethink both campaign execution and measurement paradigms.

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Profound’s $96 Million Raise Highlights Broader AI Momentum Amid Search Disruption

Adding to the momentum, Profound’s recent $96 million funding round, led by Lightspeed and valuing the 18-month-old startup at $1 billion, highlights how AI is reshaping brand visibility beyond traditional search channels. Profound’s platform aims to help brands maintain and enhance their visibility as AI-driven search engines disrupt existing discovery and advertising models.

This development reinforces several broader trends:

• Urgency to invest in AI-driven visibility and measurement tools across channels, including CTV, as AI reshapes consumer discovery pathways.
• Growing investor appetite for startups that combine AI, data science, and multi-channel attribution to support brand performance in a rapidly evolving landscape.
• Recognition that the future of advertising hinges on integrated AI solutions that unify insights and execution across digital, CTV, and emerging platforms.

Profound’s rapid valuation growth and large raise emphasize the scale and speed of the AI-driven transformation sweeping the marketing technology space.

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Conclusion: A Fundamental Reshaping of Performance Marketing’s Future

The intersection of agentic AI, tactical AI-driven ad execution, and channel innovation like CTV is not just an incremental evolution but a fundamental redefinition of performance marketing. Key takeaways include:

• Plurio’s funding and platform showcase AI’s capacity to automate and accelerate campaign decision-making in real time.
• The framing of AI advertising as a “land grab” highlights the critical competitive advantages of speed, automation, and human-AI collaboration.
• HockeyStack’s CTV focus reflects the imperative for next-generation measurement paradigms that reconcile privacy, attribution, and engagement in a fragmented media environment.
• Profound’s $96 million raise underscores the broader funding momentum behind AI solutions tackling brand visibility challenges amid shifting search dynamics.

Advertisers and technology providers who effectively integrate these trends—deploying agentic AI, embracing new media channels, and innovating measurement—will secure a decisive edge in the next wave of AI-powered, multi-channel advertising. The landscape is rapidly evolving, and those who move fast and smart will capture the lion’s share of the opportunity.