AdTech Vet on Balancing AI Impact with Need for Authenticity, Connection

At recent industry events like Advertising Week, Programmatic I/O, and the DAN Ads Summit, one topic dominated every panel and hallway chat: AI. But the hype also exposed a core tension in the market. As media spend flows toward generative AI models, the AdTech industry faces a precarious balance of investing in innovation without devaluing the very content its ecosystem runs on. The result is an unlikely collaboration between publishing and technology leaders, as both sides work to protect revenue and trust in an era of commoditization.

To understand the moment, you need to talk to someone who has seen it from all sides. So, we spoke with Shannon Rudd, a veteran of both legacy publishing and AdTech startups whose background gives her a rare perspective. From guiding media giants like Rodale and Bonnier to building operational teams at DeepIntent and Populus Media, she now advises firms on the challenges defining the industry today. "The AdTech industry faces a tricky balance. Leaders are trying to embrace AI's potential while protecting journalism and quality content from commoditization," she says.

• Content cycle: Rudd notes the current wave of disruption is part of a familiar cycle of technological change. While the promise of AI electrifies the AdTech industry, she urges a cautious and strategic approach. Her primary concern centers on the economic impact of generative AI on content creators. She questions the long-term sustainability of journalism when AI models are trained on publishers' content without clear mechanisms for compensation. "It's almost like going back to the Napster era. I think the music industry is still suffering from that, in terms of the money flowing back to the actual creators. Maybe there are some learnings there for the publishing industry," she wonders.

Rudd has witnessed a multi-phase evolution in AdTech over the past two decades. She breaks it down into three acts, starting with the shift from traditional, IO-based ad sales to the data-driven world of programmatic. This transition, which she helped pioneer, first introduced the commoditization of ad inventory. The industry is now in a third phase, where AI and new state-level privacy laws are forcing another fundamental re-optimization.

• It's complicated: Rudd debunks the myth that technological advancements simplify existing systems. She contends that AI won't make things easier off the bat, but rather introduces new layers of technical and strategic challenges. "Every evolution actually adds complexity, a reality many don't grasp unless they've been on the technical side. There's never an easy button. Instead, it's a constant process of retweaking, retooling, and restrategizing. That's precisely where we are now," she explains.

• Protecting the revenue net: So how do publishers navigate this next wave? Rudd's advice comes from an unexpected place: the lacrosse field. Drawing on her background as a two-time national champion lacrosse goalie, she describes the challenge as "protecting the net" of monetization. This involves a rigorous, page-level analysis of revenue per mille (RPM), the use of different deal types like PMPs and programmatic guaranteed, and optimizing the logic within AdTech stacks. That internal discipline, she notes, is the main line of defense as external pressures mount from forces like the Google antitrust trial and the ongoing push for digital sovereignty. "I was a national champion lacrosse goalie, so for me, it's like protecting the net, protecting your cage. It's protecting your revenue," she says.

• Authenticity as premium: But defense alone isn't enough. Rudd believes it needs to be balanced with a proactive strategy focused on authentic connection. As AI makes the digital world more artificial, she says, human connection is the new premium. For many leaders, the antidote to commoditization is brand-building and investing in content that creates a real bond with an audience. "People want that connection. And it's being lost more and more these days," she says. While the creator economy is fueled by this principle, Rudd notes that creators often face the same burnout and platform-dependency issues as large publishers, illustrating her core thesis that every evolution adds new difficulties.

Ultimately, Rudd describes the advertising industry as the "test case" for the economic and cultural impact of AI. It's a position she admits is both thrilling and terrifying. The path forward is uncertain, but her analysis suggests that navigating this era will require a commitment to detailed strategy, authentic connection, and a willingness to protect the house. "We need to elevate the voices of those actually building the solutions, like the technical, operational leaders," she urges. "They are the ones truly shaping the next stage, not just adding to the conversation."