AI-Served Ad — Glossary

Also called: Model-mediated ad. LLM-distributed ad.

Common prompts

“What is an AI-served ad?”
“How does an LLM serve an advertisement?”

Definition

An advertisement whose targeting, placement, or delivery is determined by a large language model — not by a traditional ad server or auction.

Why it matters

Traditional ad-tech assumes a deterministic auction. AI-served ads add a generative layer between the auction and the impression — the model decides when an ad is relevant. That introduces new accuracy, brand-safety, and disclosure problems no existing measurement framework handles. Criteo’s integration with OpenAI is the first large-scale example. Expect the audit, transparency, and labeling fights to follow.

Example

Criteo’s commerce data routed through OpenAI’s ad pilot inside ChatGPT, March 2026.

Related terms: Conversational ad · Retrieval anchor · Sponsored answer.

Further reading: LLM Ad Wars