Observed Signal · Dec 17, 2025 · Opinion · Source: ExchangeWire · Impact: 2/5 · Sentiment: Negative
AI in Ad Tech: A Call for Calm in 2026
Shirley Marschall’s ExchangeWire year-end column assesses AI and ad tech in 2025 while looking ahead to 2026. The piece argues that the AI conversation has grown fatigued after a year marked by hype, fear-mongering, and a flood of GenAI tools, with users often acting as unpaid testers. It sketches an industry divided between rapid change and adoption challenges, referencing quotes about AI narratives and the “Ever-Waser” mindset in advertising. Marschall envisions a calmer, more vanilla 2026, even as she notes potential developments like AI agents, quantum computing, or the first data center in space. The column closes with holiday wishes and an invitation to share ideas for 2026 on LinkedIn, while pointing to headlines about AI integrations and evolving industry chatter.
Industry commentary on AI hype and adtech fatigue; not a major industry-shifting announcement.
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Key Takeaways & Evidence Grounding
- Shirley Marschall authored a year-end ExchangeWire column (published 2025-12-17) reflecting on AI and ad tech in 2025 and projections for 2026.
- The article describes 2025 as a year of hype, fear-mongering, and vapourware in AI.
- It characterizes the 2025 AI revolution as a chaotic explosion of tools, frameworks, and competing philosophies, with Ever-Wasers nearly overdosing.
- The author advocates for a 'more vanilla' 2026, predicting AI agents, quantum computing, or the first data centre in space as possibilities.
- The piece references quotes from Anastasia Skliarenko and mentions headlines about ChatGPT variants, Gemini integration, and Sora-Disney slopification.
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AdTech Predictions: The Good, Bad, and Unbelievable Ahead
The article by Shirley Marschall surveys end-of-year predictions for advertising in 2026 and beyond, framing predictions as educated guesses about how programmatic ad markets will evolve. It covers topics like flat-earth marketing and the concentration of ad spend among major platforms, notes a high-profile Nvidia/OpenAI/Oracle collaboration, and highlights ongoing AI-driven advertising, podcasts, and the proliferation of AI-native audiences (Gen Alpha and Gen Nano). The piece also references Amazon's activity alongside Netflix, Spotify, and SiriusXM, and anticipates advertising in AI chat and evolving measurement/incrementality debates. Throughout, the author acknowledges the difficulty of forecasting and groups insights into “the good, the bad, and the made-up” for a readership focused on the esoteric side of AdTech.
Ad Tech's 2026 Resolutions: Clarity Over Hype
Shirley Marschall's ExchangeWire column outlines three New Year’s resolutions for the ad tech industry in 2026. Rather than generic calls for transparency, the piece advocates pragmatic shifts: first, reduce sensational 'death' declarations about cookies, linear TV, agencies, and attention spans; second, demand honesty about AI and pour cold water on hype rather than chasing ‘AI-powered’ labels; third, treat the ad tech stack like a cluttered closet by retiring obsolete components and reducing fragmentation across data, identifiers, and formats. The author cites Mark Ritson’s push to stop fixating on death metaphors, while Justin Scarborough and José Miguel Sokoloff warn against marketing BS and the risk of removing humans from product design. The column emphasizes that AI will reshape workflows but stresses clarity, real value, and disciplined adoption. Marschall is ExchangeWire's weekly columnist.
Three New Year’s Resolutions for Ad Tech 2026
Shirley Marschall, in an ExchangeWire column dated January 2, 2026, proposes three modest New Year’s resolutions for the ad tech industry: (1) stop reflexively declaring legacy channels or tools 'dead' and base such claims on credible behavioural evidence; (2) remove the 'AI' smoke screen by being honest about what AI features actually deliver rather than using AI as marketing gloss; and (3) actively prune and sunset outdated measurement, targeting and format layers so the ad tech stack is less cluttered and more maintainable. The piece cites industry voices (Mark Ritson, Justin Scarborough, José Miguel Sokoloff) and frames the recommendations as practical cultural and operational changes rather than radical technical shifts.
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