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Brian Gleason, a prominent figure in the advertising technology landscape, has transitioned from his role as CRO and president of retail media at Criteo to embrace a new challenge as CEO of contextual ad platform Seedtag. In an exclusive interview with AdExchanger, Gleason expressed his conviction that contextual advertising represents an even more significant opportunity than the rapidly expanding retail media sector he championed previously. He asserts that marketers are increasingly eager to return to the fundamental principles of advertising, emphasizing connection, attention, and emotion over hyper-focused, cookie-dependent targeting.
Gleason’s perspective stems from a belief that the industry’s intense focus on cookies and granular targeting has overshadowed the core purpose of advertising: forging meaningful connections with audiences. "We’ve become so hyper-focused on cookies and targeting that we lost what advertising really was about: connection," Gleason stated. He posits that true connection is built on attention and emotion, elements that traditional tracking methods and basic content categorization fail to capture. However, he sees a powerful new avenue through agentic Artificial Intelligence (AI) tools, which can unearth deeper insights and be activated by ad tech platforms.
Seedtag, under Gleason’s new leadership, is leveraging this philosophy. The company’s acquisition of video-focused SSP Beachfront last year is a testament to this strategy, enabling its AI agent, "Liz," to target audiences across Connected TV (CTV) and the open web based on both context and emotional resonance. This move positions Seedtag at the forefront of a paradigm shift, where advertising aims to resonate on a more human level, informed by sophisticated AI analysis.
The Scale of Contextual Advertising and Seedtag’s Growth
Gleason estimates the global contextual advertising market to be between $250 billion and $350 billion, a substantial figure that persuaded him to leave the burgeoning retail media space. "It took a lot to rip me away from commerce media, because I love that space, but this was an even bigger opportunity," he admitted.
Seedtag has already established a significant global presence, operating in 17 markets and connecting with over 16,000 publishers. Founded in Madrid, the company made its entry into the U.S. market two years ago and experienced an impressive 120% growth in the region last year. In the EMEA region, Seedtag reported over 30% growth in the last quarter, underscoring its rapid expansion and market traction.
Seedtag’s Strategic Pillars Under Gleason’s Leadership
Gleason outlined Seedtag’s top priorities, emphasizing a multi-faceted approach to capitalize on the evolving advertising landscape.
Neurocontextual Targeting: The Core Innovation
The foremost priority is the introduction and widespread adoption of "neurocontextual targeting." This advanced approach aims to enable advertisers to connect with audiences based on emotion, attention, and interest, moving beyond the limitations of traditional keyword and category-based contextual advertising. Seedtag, historically a pioneer in this domain, is now enhancing its capabilities with its proprietary AI platform, Liz. This technology promises to analyze content not just for its subject matter but also for its underlying emotional tenor and the attention it commands, offering a richer layer of targeting.
Global Expansion and U.S. Market Penetration
Secondly, Seedtag is focused on continued scaling, particularly within the crucial U.S. market and across all its existing international territories. The company’s recent growth figures suggest a strong foundation for further expansion, and Gleason’s leadership is expected to accelerate this trajectory.
Cross-Channel Capabilities, Especially CTV
The third key priority involves enhancing cross-channel capabilities, with a particular emphasis on CTV. While CTV represents a rapidly growing advertising category, Gleason noted that current contextual capabilities are somewhat limited. Seedtag’s investment in this area, including the Beachfront acquisition, is designed to bridge this gap and unlock the full potential of contextual targeting within the immersive CTV environment.
A Vision for Strategic Evolution, Not Revolution
Gleason clarified that his appointment as CEO will not herald a radical shift in Seedtag’s fundamental direction. Instead, his extensive background is expected to accelerate growth in specific, strategic areas.
Deepening Brand Relationships
A paramount focus will be on strengthening and expanding relationships with brands. This involves understanding their evolving needs and demonstrating how Seedtag’s contextual and neurocontextual solutions can deliver superior campaign performance and brand recall.
Expanding Publisher Supply, Particularly in CTV
Gleason also highlighted the importance of expanding Seedtag’s publisher supply, with a specific focus on CTV. As more premium video inventory becomes available, securing access and integrating it effectively into Seedtag’s targeting solutions will be crucial for meeting advertiser demand.
Enhancing Agency Partnerships
With a decade of experience at WPP and strong existing relationships with major agency holding groups like Publicis and Omnicom, Gleason intends to deepen Seedtag’s integration with agency planning systems. This will involve making Seedtag’s tools more accessible and demonstrably valuable within their established workflows, thereby driving greater adoption.
Empowering Publishers for Enhanced Monetization
Gleason’s commitment extends to publishers, a sector where he began his career. His vision for publisher monetization is rooted in understanding the intrinsic value of the consumer relationship and maximizing its economic potential. This goes beyond mere audience targeting; it involves a deep comprehension of content and its ability to foster emotional connections. Seedtag’s Liz agent is designed to provide publishers with granular insights into their content, enabling them to better articulate its value and monetize it more effectively.
"I started my career in publishing, and it’s about understanding the value of the relationship you have with the consumer, then figuring out how to get the maximum value from that relationship," Gleason explained. "You need to not just have a targeting mechanism based on an audience, but to bring relevancy to the content by understanding it. Our Liz agent will help publishers better understand their content and the emotional connection."
The Future of Programmatic Advertising: AI Agents and Connectivity
The industry is abuzz with discussions about the future of programmatic advertising, with a vision of buy-side AI agents communicating directly with sell-side AI agents. Gleason views this evolution with a nuanced perspective.
"I don’t know if they’re going to be separate agents on both sides. How many different agents can anybody operate?" he questioned. He emphasized the critical need for seamless connectivity between these evolving AI systems, acknowledging the inherent complexity. He believes that a select few players will emerge as leaders in facilitating this integration.
"Meta’s your pathway into social. Google’s got their pathway in Performance Max. We want to be the pathway that connects the buy and the sell side with intelligence that spans both sides," Gleason stated, positioning Seedtag as a crucial connective tissue in this AI-driven ecosystem. The challenge, he noted, lies in achieving this connectivity not in isolated channels but with significant scale.
Addressing the "Black Box" Concern with Agentic AI
Concerns about "black-box" systems and unaccountable algorithms are prevalent in the ad tech industry. Gleason acknowledged the risk that embracing agentic AI could exacerbate these issues. However, he stressed that transparency, brand safety, and privacy must be foundational to any AI-driven advertising strategy.
"It’s absolutely true. Transparency, brand safety and privacy have to be the basic foundations for anything we do. Be completely transparent with the inventory and where ads are running, and also in how you show outcomes," he asserted. He also underscored the importance of bringing human oversight and understanding into the AI equation, ensuring that clients comprehend how the AI models operate and how they can be customized to achieve specific outcomes and emotional connections.
Seedtag’s Market Position: An Intelligent Exchange
With the lines between DSPs and SSPs increasingly blurred, Seedtag aims to carve out a distinct niche as an intelligent exchange. While not aspiring to become an end-to-end platform, Seedtag is committed to making its intelligence accessible to all buying paths.
"No. We have an exchange where our inventory is available, and we’re going to continue to build that out," Gleason confirmed. "However anybody wants to buy, we want to make our intelligence accessible to that buying path. The agentic frontend with Liz will be the main point of activation, but if you want to use a traditional DSP to activate campaigns through our exchange, there’s a pathway to do that." This approach offers flexibility, allowing buyers to leverage Seedtag’s advanced contextual insights through their preferred buying platforms.
Bridging Commerce and Contextual Advertising
Looking ahead, Gleason expressed enthusiasm for the potential synergies between commerce and neurocontextual advertising. He envisioned a future where emotional signals, derived from neurocontextual analysis, are combined with contextual targeting and purchase intent data to create more effective, end-to-end marketing strategies.
"If I’m thinking about commerce and neurocontextual, well, emotion is brand recall. Imagine taking an emotional signal, marrying that to a contextual target and purchase intent, and then moving that up and down the funnel," he explained. This holistic approach could significantly enhance brand recall and drive conversions across the entire customer journey.
When asked about potential collaborations with retail and commerce media platforms, specifically Criteo, Gleason remained open and optimistic. "We’d love to have that conversation with everybody, including Criteo," he stated, signaling a willingness to explore partnerships that can unlock new opportunities at the intersection of commerce and contextual intelligence. This forward-looking stance positions Seedtag as a potentially pivotal player in the evolving advertising ecosystem, driven by a renewed focus on human connection and powered by advanced AI.
