Kochava: “2026 will see humans collaborating with AI”
January 13, 2026
Kochava, a provider of real-time data solutions, has shared its predictions for the AdTech market in 2026. According to Charles Manning, CEO at Kochava, the year ahead will see marketers switch from a focus on implementation to integration when it comes to AI, as well as a new found appreciation for the role of human creativity in the workplace and the introduction of an all new media network.
Manning has outlined his five predictions on the ways that technology will evolve to shape AdTech over the coming 12 months.
- AI Orchestration turns integrative
Manning said: “Agentic orchestration is set to happen at scale, taking place on the desktop and not in the cloud. Alongside a growing appetite for hyper-personalised AI tools with advanced capabilities are the governance requirements on how data can be used in AI applications. This will lead to an increased use of AI tools on employee machines, rather than third-party SaaS tools. Integration is the key, bringing together the resources that people currently use, with models that they’re allowed to use, to produce better productivity results. This will spur growth and will be the primary productivity use-case of AI in enterprises.”
- Human intelligence and creativity reclaim the stage
Manning stated: “As employees are armed with at-scale access to integrative AI, they’ll automate menial tasks and possess the potential to work on more than ever. The result is that more time will be carved out for humans to add their own creative flair, based on their unique lived experiences, that will hold additional value in the coming year.”
“The era of implementing AI is firmly over. 2026 will see humans collaborating with it, working with agentic tools to improve efficiency and complete tasks faster and to a higher standard. Combining the creative power of humans with the processing capabilities of agents will deliver a new level of results.”
- Reinvention of the tools of yesterday
Manning said: “The ad industry is set to be very busy re-creating the tools and processes that it has frequently relied on in the past, using next-generation agentic tooling of today. Whether it’s ad buying, creative optimisation, audience targeting, or measurement, the whole industry will re-invent, re-architect and re-deploy systems using agentic technology approaches to transform the business of digital advertising. With the established examples of these new approaches such as AdCP and Agentic RTB Framework, a host of companies will spend 2026 re-conforming their products and services around these and other technology approaches with a key focus on the ability to interoperate.”
- AI chat becomes a media network
Manning continued: “Last year OpenAI announced its plans to introduce advertising on ChatGPT. Precisely how these will look remains unclear, but OpenAI is leading the way in pioneering a new media network in which it will retain control over performance, measurement and monetisation. Other platforms are sure to follow suit too, whether these initiatives are called ‘Ads’, ‘Offers’, or ‘Integrated Commerce’ is yet to be seen, but the ad monetised approach of LLM driven discovery will see huge growth in 2026. Marketers that adapt and adopt will leverage a huge advantage over their competitors.”
- AI brings new challenges in privacy and data transparency
Manning added: “Data privacy regulation has rightly been a major focus over the last five years around the globe, but much uncertainty remains in legislation which has led to an enforcement strategy that is subjective at best. In short, there lacks a universal standard to guide best practice. To add to this, LLMs generate results that aren’t easily traceable and the notion of ‘opt-out’ for end-user consent isn’t really a viable concept. In contrast to a traditional marketing tracking on a website, a database record can be updated when a user opts out. If a user wants to be ‘forgotten about’ in an LLM however, a model must be entirely re-built, posing new complex challenges around whether user privacy is really viable.”
“It is now harder than ever to regulate technology solutions for transparency, privacy and consent. The lack of clear legislation only adds to the challenge, and it remains to be seen whether it will catch up to the fast-moving technology,” he concluded.