Digiday Programmatic Marketing Summit

The programmatic manual for the modern ad market

“Programmatic is not a media channel.” That statement has never been more true. From traditional TV to streaming, search to social, banners to billboards, all this inventory can be purchased programmatically. Which creates all kinds of opportunities and all kinds of challenges.

A decade ago, brands’ and agencies’ programmatic teams were largely preoccupied with online display ads. Now they are participating in upfront negotiations and spearheading short-form video ad buys and collaborating more than ever with teams across their organizations. They are becoming the nexus point in ad buying operations.

At the same time, the programmatic supply chain is expanding and contracting. Demand-side platforms and supply-side platforms are morphing into unified ad platforms. Agentic AI is enabling the automation of ad inventory that was never equipped for real-time bidding, like NFL playoff games. Marketers’ supply path optimization strategies are being tested like never before, and they stand to intersect with a newfound emphasis on agentic governance.

At the December 2026 edition of the Digiday Programmatic Marketing Summit, brand and agency executives will convene to come to grips with a programmatic industry at an inflection point. On-stage sessions will feature deep-dives into how ad buyers are tightening the path to inventory, why programmatic teams are buying short-form video inventory, whether AI agents are improving ad buying processes and what the evolution of AI-powered ad buying platforms like Google’s Performance Max and Meta’s Advantage+ means for marketers’ optimization tactics. And behind-closed-door town hall sessions will allow attendees to compare notes on the challenges they face and the solutions they have found in today’s programmatic era. Because programmatic is not a marketplace, it is marketers’ path to the market.

Prices on passes increase after September 21. Add a calendar reminder.