Imagine if AI agents could buy ads anywhere — from CTV to search engines — through a single universal API.
That’s the vision behind Ad Context Protocol (AdCP), a new open standard designed to enable agentic AIs to run end-to-end advertising campaigns, seamlessly connecting with any platform across the ecosystem.
AdCP is an open and universal protocol designed to simplify how artificial intelligence agents interact with advertising systems.
Instead of relying on specific integrations for each DSP, social network, or video platform, AdCP provides a single standardized way to describe, activate, and measure campaigns.
As explained by the project:
"AdCP connects agents and ad platforms through a common language for buying and selling media."
In other words, it allows agents to discover inventory, send briefs, optimize creatives, activate signals, and execute buys without having to navigate multiple proprietary APIs or dashboards.
AdCP is built on the Model Context Protocol (MCP) , a technical specification designed to enable AI models (such as LLMs) to communicate with external tools using a structured and secure language.
This makes AdCP an “Advertising Automation API” capable of connecting agents with real ecosystem platforms — from SSPs and DSPs to measurement, identity, and creative systems.
In the words of Brian O’Kelley, creator of AppNexus and one of the project’s drivers:
“The Ad Context Protocol is a universal ads API — a shared language that allows AI agents to plan, buy, and optimize media across the entire ecosystem.”
Until now, each advertising platform operated with its own data model, API, and rules.
This made automating processes at scale costly, fragile, and limited. AdCP proposes a structural shift:
Benefit | What It Means |
---|---|
Real Interoperability | Agents can connect to any compatible platform without ad hoc development. |
End-to-End Automation | From planning to buying to optimization, without manual intervention. |
Transparency | Metrics, signals, and results shared in a common format. |
Open Innovation | Any ecosystem participant can implement the protocol and join the network. |
As Paul Vincent, one of the early technical advocates, summarizes: “This isn’t another closed API or walled garden — it’s an open standard for everyone in the advertising ecosystem.”
The potential of AdCP is enormous, but its success will depend on several key factors:
The launch of the Ad Context Protocol marks a turning point in the evolution of Ad Tech.
We are moving from closed, platform-specific APIs to open, universal protocols designed for autonomous agents to collaborate and operate on behalf of humans.
The Ad Context Protocol proposes a new common language for digital advertising.
If it achieves sufficient adoption, it could become the foundational layer on which AI agents plan, buy, and optimize global campaigns, redefining the way we interact with the advertising ecosystem.
The future of advertising automation may not lie in a new platform, but in a universal protocol that connects them all.
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