Observed Signal · Jul 23, 2026 · Opinion / Industry Analysis · Source: AdExchanger · Impact: 4/5 · Sentiment: Positive
Ad Tech Must Value Non‑Human (Agentic) Traffic
An opinion piece by Mark Zagorski, CEO of DoubleVerify, argues that the rise of agentic AI — autonomous agents acting on behalf of consumers — requires the advertising industry to rethink how it values non‑human traffic. The article notes that bot and agent traffic has recently overtaken human web traffic (citing Cloudflare/NBC News), and urges development of new measurement, verification and authentication standards to distinguish high‑intent consumer agents from fraudulent or low‑value bots. It also highlights that generative AI search and conversational interfaces are reshaping discovery, changing attribution and requiring measurement that captures influence within agent‑driven decision flows.
Agentic AI and non‑human agent traffic can materially change discovery, measurement and attribution across advertising; the industry will need new verification, authentication and measurement standards.
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Key Takeaways & Evidence Grounding
- Author: Mark Zagorski, CEO of DoubleVerify.
- Article published on 2026-07-23.
- The article cites Cloudflare data (reported via NBC News) indicating bot and AI agent website traffic has eclipsed human traffic.
- The author calls for new measurement, independent verification, authentication standards and attribution models to distinguish trusted agentic traffic from fraud or low‑value bots.
- The piece states generative AI search and conversational AI are changing discovery and what counts as reach and influence for advertisers.
Connected Companies & Entities
5 Entities mapped“By Mark Zagorski, DoubleVerify...”
“And, according to Cloudflare, website traffic from bots and AI agents has eclipsed human traffic as of last month....”
“The Cloudflare finding is referenced via a NBC News link reporting that bot web traffic overtaken human web traffic....”
“The dynamics of search advertising have completely changed in the last three years. Google’s search box changes will only accelerate that....”
“© 2026 Access Intelligence, LLC - All Rights Reserved...”
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Ads to AI Agents Face Measurement Challenges
Digiday's Media Briefing (Aug 20, 2026) examines the emerging race to measure and attribute ads served to AI agents and explains why the industry has not agreed on a standard approach. The briefing highlights measurement and attribution challenges for ads delivered into conversational/agentic interfaces, and points to recent industry moves — such as Perplexity blocking Time’s ads and Time beginning to serve ads to AI agents — that underscore both commercial opportunity and policy friction. The piece is part of Digiday+’s weekly Media Briefing series for subscribers and situates the issue alongside related publisher-adtech developments.
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