TLDR: A recent report by DoubleVerify indicates a significant shift in marketing strategies, with 91% of marketers either currently using or planning to adopt third-party AI and automation tools for campaign bidding. This move aims to enhance performance, streamline operations, and free up marketers from time-consuming manual tasks, ultimately driving more intelligent and outcome-based campaigns.
A comprehensive 2025 Global Insights report, titled ‘AI, Automation and the Future of Digital Advertising,’ released by DoubleVerify, a leading software platform for media quality and ad performance, highlights a profound transformation in the digital advertising landscape. The study, based on platform intelligence, campaign-level analytics, and a global survey of 1,970 marketing and advertising decision-makers, reveals that artificial intelligence (AI) is rapidly becoming indispensable for modern marketers.
One of the most striking findings is that a remarkable 91% of marketers are now leveraging or intend to leverage third-party AI and automated bidding tools, moving beyond their traditional Demand-Side Platforms (DSPs). This widespread adoption is driven by the increasingly fragmented and dynamic media environment, where marketers seek to regain control and execute more intelligent, results-oriented campaigns.
Mark Zagorski, CEO of DoubleVerify, emphasized the strategic importance of this shift, stating, ‘Campaign managers are often trapped in reactive workflows, acting more like hands-on campaign facilitators than strategists.’ He added, ‘This shift isn’t just about automation, it’s about enabling smarter strategies that yield tangible returns on investment.’ The report underscores that AI-powered solutions offer an opportunity to automate routine decisions, allowing marketing teams to concentrate on higher-level strategic thinking and performance optimization.
The report also sheds light on the significant operational burden faced by marketers. It found that campaign managers dedicate an average of 26% of their time—exceeding 10 hours per week—to manual optimizations such as adjusting bid modifiers, reallocating budgets, and fine-tuning performance thresholds. For North American agencies, this translates to an estimated annual loss of over $17,000 per team member due to time spent on repetitive tasks.
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AI adoption is seeing a marked increase across various campaign functions. Year-over-year growth rates show that campaign activation has surged by 32%, representing the largest jump across all workflows. Bidding and mid-flight optimization saw a 12% increase, reflecting AI’s superior ability to manage complex media performance levers. Additionally, summarizing media briefs rose by 11%, and dynamic creative optimization grew by 8%, further illustrating AI’s expanding role in enhancing efficiency and effectiveness in digital advertising.
