Welcome to the Agentic AI Era: How Yahoo DSP Is Redefining Programmatic

‍

Agentic AI is revolutionizing and redefining how the ad tech industry operates. The advertising ecosystem is now entering the agentic AI phase, where AI expands beyond simple automation and decision support into true execution. Intelligent agents can now take action on behalf of users, saving time, streamlining workflows, and driving greater efficiency across the campaign lifecycle. This shift is already resonating with marketers, with 70% reporting a positive overall impression of agentic AI¹, signaling strong momentum toward broader adoption.

At Yahoo DSP, we’ve been leveraging AI for years now. An early example is AdLearn, one of the first large-scale machine learning engines in programmatic advertising. AdLearn processed massive volumes of event-level data to automatically adjust bidding strategies in real time. This foundation evolved into Yahoo Blueprint Performance, enabling faster data processing and more advanced performance optimization.

Another example is Yahoo Predictive Audiences, an AI-based solution that helps advertisers reach high-intent consumers. Predictive Audiences use a scoring system to forecast users’ likelihood to convert, powered by the Yahoo vast, consented ecosystem of signals from more than 637M global users.²

Agentic AI at the Core of Yahoo DSP

As the advertising industry transitions to an agentic AI future, Yahoo DSP is evolving to put ​ agentic AI at its core. Our goal is simple: streamline and simplify the tedious, time-consuming tasks traders face every day, so they can focus more on strategy, insight, and growth.

61% of marketers say they want AI to do most of the work, while still requiring human approval before any actions are taken.³  This principle sits at the core of our approach. We view Agentic AI as an extension of our clients’ teams, helping them move faster and make better decisions, while keeping people in control. The user always remains in charge, providing the final approval before an agent proceeds with any task. Additionally, our approach to Agentic AI is intentional; we use it where it delivers meaningful value for our clients, and continue to rely on traditional workflows and APIs when they’re simply the better solution.

The real power of our Agentic AI approach lies in the choice and control it provides. With a flexible, interoperable framework, clients can decide when and how to use Agentic AI. It’s plug-and-play intelligence is designed to fit your workflow today—and future-proof your operations for tomorrow.

The Yahoo DSP Agentic AI strategy is built on three modes of engagement—Yours, Ours, and Mine—giving advertisers total flexibility.

• Yours: External Agents via MCP - Through our investment in foundational infrastructure, such as Model Context Protocols (MCPs) and open agentic APIs, external AI agents can securely access Yahoo DSP tools and raw data. This enables seamless cross-platform workflows. A common use case is cross-platform budget management. A client’s agent can pull campaign details from Yahoo DSP, such as budgets, pacing, bid exclusions and combine them with data from other DSPs. The agent can then recommend reallocations toward the platforms and tactics driving the strongest outcomes and execute those changes without ever logging directly into Yahoo DSP. Today, Audience Exploration via MCP is live, allowing partners to access raw data through APIs or MCPs to deepen audience discovery and planning.

• Ours: Agent-to-Agent Collaboration - In this model, Yahoo DSP agents collaborate directly with a client’s own AI agents. Both agents apply their own logic and reasoning, combining strengths to deliver richer insights and actions than either could alone. For example, a Yahoo DSP agent may propose multiple optimization scenarios, while the client’s agent evaluates those options against broader business goals and selects the strategy that best aligns with overall objectives.

• Mine: Yahoo DSP Agents - Yahoo DSP native agents are deeply integrated, always up to date, and informed by more than two decades of AI leadership and exclusive, consented data. These agents power every stage of the campaign lifecycle, delivering intelligence exactly where it’s needed. A key example is Troubleshooting. The Troubleshooting Agent—now live in Yahoo DSP—proactively identifies issues such as delivery or pacing problems and pinpoints root causes without human intervention. In the near future, traders will be able to interact with the agent through a simple chat interface to get more clarity on the issues surfaced, review suggested actions, and even instruct the agent to resolve problems directly—freeing up valuable time to focus on higher-value work.

The Benefits of Agentic AI in Yahoo DSP

• Efficiency: Eliminate repetitive manual work. Agentic AI handles campaign setup, optimization, and issue resolution, giving teams time back for strategy and growth.
• Performance: Drive measurable, understandable lifts through continuous optimization and smarter bid decisions.
• Clarity: Get actionable insights and recommendations exactly when you need them—no guesswork required.
• Scalability: Confidently grow campaigns and reach while Agentic AI manages complexity and adapts as you scale.

What’s next

We’re just getting started. Yahoo DSP will continue expanding Agentic AI across the platform in 2026 and beyond. Imagine a trusted guide helping you navigate the Yahoo DSP - engage the troubleshooting assistant to automatically apply delivery and pacing optimizations, effortlessly find the perfect audience through robust audience exploration and creation, and ensure seamless launches with campaign QA capabilities.  Stay tuned for what’s next!

‍

^1,3 Yahoo DSP Blueprint & Agentic AI Market Opportunity Research, Oct 2025

² Yahoo Internal Data, Q1 2025