by John Still on 25th Mar 2026 in Video Interviews

In this episode of A Coffee With... David Ayre, head of programmatic for Europe at Assembly Global, joins ExchangeWire's head of content, John Still, over a hot chocolate to discuss the programmatic landscape.

David outlines a career spanning early work with publishers at Teads (formerly Ebuzzing) and as head of programmatic and managing partner at Dentsu, before joining Assembly to move into a challenger agency. Tune in as he and John chat the proliferation of AI, shifting supply paths, and the role of agencies in today's programmatic landscape.

David Ayre will also be joining our excellent panel of judges for The Wires 2026!

Programmatic Landscape in 2026

David compares today’s surge of programmatic AI plugins to the early programmatic network boom. New vendors promise automation, optimisation, and data connectivity weekly, creating choice overload. The key challenge is verifying which tools to use and when, ensuring real value rather than chasing hype.

The supply chain is also shifting. CTV sellers like Netflix and Disney are moving closer to DSPs, partially bypassing SSPs, while SSPs add value via measurement, AI, and creative tooling. The net result is more fragmentation and complexity, but also greater customisation potential for clients if navigated well.

"What you don't ever want to do is complicate things with clients because I think that's when clients suddenly go, "that's really complex and fragmented, other channels might be easier" ... I think that's the role of what agencies should be doing is simplifying it, but in a consultative way, whether they're an in-house client or whether they're fully with the agency." —David Ayre

Evolving Programmatic Experiences

Programmatic is no longer just “display” – it now spans YouTube, CTV, DOOH, audio, gaming, and retail media. Measurement must capture programmatic’s causal uplift on search and social, not just last-click or siloed KPIs, to reflect true incremental impact.

There is now greater opportunity for CTV due to interactivity and new surfaces like home-screen ads and pause ads. David expects shoppable TV to return at scale via better integrations. A balanced media mix is still essential. Programmatic’s strength lies in orchestrating that mix for maximum effectiveness rather than concentrating all spend in one environment.

AI's Impact on Agency Workflows

AI enables faster data unification and insight generation to inform strategy. Teams may still conduct analysis, but AI reduces time-to-clarity and opens more strategic opportunities by consolidating data and highlighting what matters.

While many DCO efforts remain manual, AI can enable true DCO if clients share sufficient, well-linked data. AI can also drive optimisation through micro-performance clustering, reallocating spend to thousands of high-performing pockets rather than broad heuristics.

Looking ahead, AI vendors will consolidate, and differentiation will hinge on data and algorithms across increasingly similar inventories. Agencies must understand how each platform’s data informs optimisation and conversion identification, which complicates buying and negotiation. Market dynamics and backing will likely winnow the field toward simplification.

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