The Information’s Stephanie Palazzolo reported that OpenAI is considering an authentication play across the open web. She teased her story on LinkedIn (October 16):
“OpenAI is taking a page from the big tech playbook by pitching companies on adding a ‘sign in with ChatGPT’ option to their sites, similar to how you might sign in with Google or Facebook. Part of the pitch: Companies that agree can transfer the costs of using OpenAI’s models to their customers.”
Read: OpenAI’s Growing Ecosystem Play (October 16) – The Information (subscription)
From tipsheet: Addressability, right this way.
Just think of the login data pouring in and feeding OpenAI’s LLMs as well as its advertising optimization algos? It’s only a matter of time.
Also, a ChatGPT version for publishers seems like another imminent product announcement. You can have your very own ChatGPT restricted to only your site’s data. OR, you can have an ad-supported version that lives on your site.
Meanwhile, Google now has “AI Mode” running on Kayak –read more here.
By the way, how long until a CTV-related announcement related to OpenAI’s ChatGPT? That oughta upset the fruit basket. ChatGPT is a media company, too.
Eric Seufert on Open AI & ads on TPBN
“Everyone should be excited about OpenAI launching an ads platform. This is beneficial broadly for the economy. Ads are the driver of the internet economy.
Look —but for Facebook ads, but for conversion optimized Facebook ads— the DTC category won’t exist. E-commerce would be much smaller than it is. There would be far fewer small businesses in this country.
Ads is a growth engine, not just for E-Com or not just for Tech Bros, for everything. It is the beating heart of the economy. Everyone should be excited about this.”
Here more from Mobile Dev Memo analyst Eric Seufert on TBPN via the Apple Podcasts app [beginning 3:03:42]. (October 16)
SELL-SIDE
IAB calls for LLM monetization
At the Optable Connect 2025 event in New York City yesterday, IAB Tech Lab CEO Tony Katsur provided attendees with an overview of the 4 phases of the IAB’s LLM Content API initiative:
- API Controls Access
- Crawler Access Terms
- Logging & Reporting
- Tokenization & Request Processing
During his presentation, Mr. Katsur was unequivocal:
“It is time for publishers to start monetizing LLM content. I think the days of crawling don’t scale. It doesn’t scale for the LLMs. Frankly, it feels like they have unlimited funding right now -because they do, because we’re at the top of the hype cycle- but they are going to have to get more efficient as time goes on. So I think there’s a win-win here for a publisher and the LLMs.”
Mr. Katsur also noted that during Advertising Week in New York last week, he met with over 20 publishers who believed in a “huge myth.”
That myth: “I’ve been crawled. It’s over.” It’s not.
More:
-
LLM Content Ingest API Initiative (June 4) – IAB Tech Lab
-
IAB Tech Lab Forms AI Content Monetization Protocols (CoMP) Working Group to Set AI-Era Publisher Monetization Standards (August 19) – press release
From tipsheet: In the future, one could see the large language model companies (OpenAI, Anthropic, etc.) coming to the table to help figure out the LLM Content API initiative. But, it’s still so so so very early days. I don’t think LLM companies know what will happen next month, let alone a year from now.
LLMs & CHATBOTS
Developments
- Introducing Claude Skills (October 16) – Anthropic
- OpenAI wants to own it all (October 16) – Financial Times (subscription)
- Making every Windows 11 PC an AI PC (October 16) – Microsoft Windows blog
STARTUPS
Founded in AI and ad tech
Startup founders who have sipped from the fountain of ad tech and are now infusing their ad tech pursuits with AI are featured in AdExchanger. Joanna Gerber highlighted seven founders including Kyle Csik of Adaly, a startup which aims to be the “Spotify of data”:
“Instead of downloading data piecemeal and compiling it into a cohesive “playlist,” Adaly, co-founded by CEO [Kyle] Csik and CTO Aleksandar Sasha Grujicic, pulls in real-time data from all of a marketer’s sources. The company uses data from sources like Google Analytics, Statista and the Trade Desk to produces analytics and reports without any downloads or data infrastructure.”
Uniquely, Mr. Csik’s career includes experience at all the major ad agency holding companies: Publicis, Omnicom and WPP. His co-founder, Mr. Grujicic, has similar agency roots.
Read all seven features here. (October 16)
PLATFORMS
AppLovin app install allegations
Pressure appears to be building on mobile ad technology company AppLovin which has been accused of allegedly allowing “backdoor” app installs through its Array mobile ad product – first reported by Bloomberg on Wednesday.
AppLovin said it closed the product as of last quarter according to an AppLovin spokesperson who spoke to Adweek’s Kendra Barnett.
Barnett reported that “chief financial officer Matthew Stumpf last year cited Array, alongside a handful of other parts of the business, as key to AppLovin’s revenue growth. The LinkedIn profile of former AppLovin product lead Jia-Hong Xu previously claimed that Array’s direct download ad function was “the company’s top revenue driver.” Applovin told Barnett AppLovin has reassigned workers on the Array team to its burgeoning e-commerce business, the spokesperson said. Read more. (October 15)
From tipsheet: Last week’s SEC investigation allegations aren’t helping AppLovin’s prospects. And consultant Ben Edelman has described more allegations here.
Nevertheless, the company’s market cap hovers at a healthy $200 billion today, which is 4x its market cap at the beginning of the year. Its AI-enabled Axon ad platform remains a key growth driver for the company.
FUNDING
Funding for AEO startup, ‘LLM share’
Geekwire reports that answer engine optimization (AEO) startup Gumshoe AI has received $2 million in seed funding for future growth. Todd Sawicki, who was at Lookery and Zemanta in his earlier ad tech days, is a co-founder along with Patrick O’Donnell.
Geekwire’s Taylor Soper explained, “Gumshoe’s technology generates thousands of conversations with AI models, helping marketers see how their brands are discussed and what sources are cited. This allows them to discover what AI is telling potential customers about their products compared to competitors and whether a company is winning the so-called ‘share of LLM’ — a metric measuring how often brands are mentioned in AI-generated answers.” Read more. (October 16)
From tipsheet: “Share of LLM.” Write it down. And somebody call Nielsen’s product department.
PLATFORMS
Salesforce all-in on AI agents
“You might not know but Salesforce Marketing Cloud is going through some epic changes right now. Here’s what I mean:
-> 2 trillion personalized engagements last yr
-> 250 for every person on Earth
But what is personalization?
(…) More and more there’s a component of talk-back. Consumers are like ppl on the social nets these days with the DMs and the back-and-forth and they are starting to expect a talking brand.
This is a big change.
There is a solution: AI Agents, which can respond and act …”
PEOPLE MOVES
Former IAC and Inmar Intelligence executive, Ali Mirian, joins OpenWeb as SVP of Product. (October 15) – LinkedIn
From tipsheet: OpenWeb is led by Jim Daily, former CEO of Teads[dot]tv.
MORE
- Here come the AI-generated restaurant ads (October 16) – Restaurant Business Online
- The Economist licenses its content to enterprise clients’ private LLMs (October 16) – Digiday (subscription)
- Inside Snap’s efforts to scale custom audiences with Epsilon’s clean room (October 16) – Marketing Dive
- How Instacart is using partnerships, AI and creativity to redefine retail media (October 16) – Instacart sponsored content on Ad Age
- Meta Withdraws From MRC Brand Safety Audits, Loses Accreditation Just Months After It Was Issued (October 16) – Adweek