The 2025 Samba Summit made one thing clear: the future of advertising isn’t on the horizon. It is happening right now.

In Sonoma, California, leaders from across media, technology, and advertising came together to explore how AI, data, and collaboration are redefining the way brands understand and engage audiences. Over two days, attendees witnessed the next chapter of an industry in motion, from the launch of AdCP consortium to transformative discussions on AI-driven creativity, streaming intelligence, and representation in media.

Agentic AI: From Concept to Reality

A defining theme of this year’s Summit was Agentic AI. This is not about automation but intelligence that can act, think, and execute. The launch of the AdCP consortium set the stage for a more open and connected ecosystem where AI agents can work across platforms with full transparency and accountability.

Samba, as an early launch partner of AdCP, showcased how agentic systems can already discover audiences, build segments, and activate campaigns in real time. A highlight moment came with the live demo of the Samba AI Agent, which proved that the era of theoretical AI has given way to practical, intelligent action.

“Our Audience Manager MCP server demonstrates how AI agents can access Samba’s signals across TV, streaming, and web to build and activate campaigns programmatically. We’re building the infrastructure that makes cross-platform AI orchestration possible.” Samba CEO Ashwin Navin 

The takeaway was clear: Agentic AI is not replacing human creativity. It is amplifying it. Click to join our Early Adopters Program.

The New Reality of Streaming

Streaming has officially overtaken traditional TV, growing by 46% year-over-year. This shift demands unified, cross-platform intelligence to connect fragmented audiences and deliver true reach.

Sessions explored how solutions like Samba’s Identity Spine, powered by 1.5 billion connected IDs and a knowledge graph of trillions of TV signals and billions of monthly web interactions, are redefining how marketers see and understand consumers.

This convergence of TV and digital data is not just analytics. It is the foundation for enabling campaigns that reflect how people actually live, watch, and buy.

Measuring What Matters: Outcomes and Impact

The Summit reinforced that the metric that truly matters is outcome. Across panels and presentations, leaders like Horizon Media’s Nav Singh, TikTok’s Robin Shore, and Kochava’s Julia Kan demonstrated how measurement must evolve from counting impressions to proving real business impact.

From first-party outcomes to true reach and frequency, the discussions underscored that smarter data leads to smarter strategy. Measurement grounded in transparency, precision, and accountability drives performance and earns trust.

‍Representation and Intelligence: Reaching the Audiences That Matter

One of the most powerful sessions tackled representation on and off the screen. Despite $4.7 trillion in spending power, Hispanic and Asian audiences remain significantly under-reached.

Panelists including TelevisaUnivision’s Brian Lin, and actors Yetide Badaki and Osric Chau, joined Samba’s Alyson Sprague to discuss how inclusive storytelling and smarter targeting together can create lasting impact.

When data and representation align, advertising becomes more than communication. It becomes connection.

The Creator Economy: Where Audiences and Influence Collide

The creator economy is no longer a niche. It is a driving force behind modern media consumption and brand engagement.

In one of the Summit’s most talked-about sessions, “Know Your Audience, Build Your Business: Inside the New Creator Economy,” Samba COO Alvir Navin joined Publicis Groupe’s Chris Pearson and creators Mary Holland Nader and Grace Ann Nader of Love Thy Nader to discuss how creators are influencing what audiences watch, buy, and believe.

The conversation revealed how the creator-to-consumer connection is reshaping advertising strategy itself. Creators are no longer just brand ambassadors. They are media channels, storytellers, and audience experts in their own right.

With Samba’s data and AI insights, brands and agencies can understand these audience behaviors at scale, linking creator-driven cultural moments to measurable outcomes across TV, streaming, and digital environments.

Collaboration in Action: The Clean Room Future

The future of advertising will be built together. Sessions featuring Snowflake, Databricks, and Acxiom highlighted how privacy-safe clean rooms are becoming the new standard for data collaboration.

By combining first-party and deterministic data, marketers can unlock actionable insights without compromising consumer trust. It is a vision of interoperability, accountability, and shared innovation that is already taking shape.

Looking Ahead: Creating the Future Together

The 2025 Samba Summit was not just about where the industry is going. It was a showcase of how far it has already come.

Across two days, we saw bold ideas evolve into actionable strategies and emerging technologies become tools that are already transforming the way we measure, market, and connect.

From agentic AI and cross-platform intelligence to outcome-driven measurement and inclusive storytelling, this year’s Summit captured a powerful truth: the future of advertising is not being predicted. It is being built collaboratively today.

A heartfelt thank you to our partners, customers, and sponsors who made this year’s Summit possible. Together, we are shaping a smarter, more creative, and more accountable media ecosystem.