The pace of change in advertising has never been faster—or more uncomfortable. As AI transitions from hype to practical implementation, media buyers, creative teams, and tech platforms are under increasing pressure to adapt. While automation promises efficiency, the rise of AI-driven decisioning is sparking fundamental questions about trust, transparency, and the future role of agencies and platforms.

In this episode of First-Party Pod, Gloria and Rio sit down with Ed Dinichert, Chief Revenue Officer at TripleLift, to discuss how AI is reshaping every layer of ad tech—from daily workflows and campaign optimization to the broader power dynamics between DSPs, SSPs, and the open web. With two decades of experience at WPP, Amazon, and now TripleLift, Ed offers a grounded yet provocative look at what this transformation really means for the industry.

They also dig into the resistance to AI decisioning, the ethical pitfalls facing walled gardens, and the challenges of creative attribution in an AI-native ecosystem. Plus, Ed shares insights into TripleLift’s approach to creative automation, component-based CTV ads, and why publishers who prioritize quality may come out on top in an increasingly AI-dominated landscape.

The shift from third-party cookies, increasing demand for transparency, and the commoditization of SSPs have triggered a new phase in digital advertising—one that repositions publishers at the helm of media decisioning. In this episode of First-Party Pod, Gloria and Rio sit down with Scott Messer, founder of Messer Media and long-time sell-side advocate, to unpack the growing momentum behind Sell-Side Decisioning (SSD), the reimagining of curation, and what it means for SSPs, DSPs, and agencies alike.

They explore how SSD empowers publishers to attach deal IDs and activate data in the crucial milliseconds after a bid request, reshaping how algorithms and curators influence the path to purchase. Scott explains why agencies and SSPs are embracing curation 2.0—powered by first-party data and probabilistic IDs—while DSPs face existential questions about their future role in media buying.

Plus, a look at buy-side opacity, the reality of bid duplication, seller-defined audiences, and and why the future of digital advertising hinges on trust, interoperability, and a new era of publisher innovation.

The deprecation of third-party cookies and rise of privacy regulations have reshaped digital advertising—and publishers are feeling the pressure. While curation was once hailed as a fix, its first wave prioritized intermediaries over true innovation. Today, a new model is emerging: one that puts publishers back in control and redefines how agencies access high-quality, trusted supply.

In this episode of First-Party Pod, Gloria and Rio sit down with Joe Root, CEO and co-founder of Permutive, to unpack the evolution from Curation 1.0 to 2.0—and what it means for publishers, agencies, and the open web. They explore how legacy data arbitrage models gave rise to opaque, unsustainable practices, and why the next wave of curation must be powered by publisher-owned signals and agency-led deal construction.

They also dive into the promise of probabilistic clean rooms, the shifting economics of deal-based media buying, and why deterministic identity is holding the open internet back. Joe shares how Permutive is enabling real-time, privacy-safe activation of publisher data, why AI is transforming campaign optimization, and how clean room and curation innovations can finally deliver scalable, addressable advertising.

Plus, they discuss how publishers are monetizing previously unbiddable signals, how agencies can regain control of media quality, and why the future of ad tech will be won on trust, speed, and collaboration.