Viant Technology (DSP) 27th Annual Needham Growth Conference summary

Key skills and industry perspectives

• Narrative building and a 'sixth sense' for industry trends are seen as critical to success in ad tech, helping differentiate value propositions and anticipate market shifts.

• The open web is viewed as expanding, with walled gardens like Meta and Snapchat opening up to programmatic integration, a trend expected to accelerate through 2026.

• AI is seen as a major disruptor, with skepticism about current AI marketing claims and a belief that true AI products will transform advertising and SaaS pricing models.

Customer growth and competitive positioning

• Significant new client wins are reported, especially in the mid-market segment, with a focus on U.S.-based national advertisers and market share gains from Yahoo and Trade Desk.

• Connected TV (CTV) is experiencing rapid growth, driven by a focus on direct access and granular show-level targeting enabled by the IRIS.TV acquisition.

• The IRIS.TV acquisition is widely praised in the industry, both for its unique data and for bringing in top talent, and is expected to drive further CTV growth.

Industry structure and future outlook

• The trend toward direct connections between content owners and DSPs is reducing the role of SSPs, with predictions that only 2-4 SSPs and 2 independent DSPs will remain in five years.

• The definition of a true DSP is debated, with a distinction made between independent DSPs and ad networks tied to supply.

• Joint business proposals (JBPs) are increasing, especially with larger clients, but are seen as less attractive due to lack of guaranteed revenue and potential conflicts of interest.