IAB Connected Commerce Summit

Commerce media is undergoing a rapid transformation—not just in size, but in reach. What began within retail has expanded into a cross-industry movement, with sectors like financial services, B2B, and travel launching their own networks to harness the power of commerce-driven advertising. Even within retail, innovation continues to accelerate as in-store monetization and offsite media become new growth engines, enabling brands to activate retailer first-party data with greater sophistication.

Commerce media is transforming how brands reach and engage consumers across the funnel. In this candid fireside conversation, marketing leaders from a cross-section of top consumer brands will open up about their journeys in this fast-changing space. From early pilots to scaled investments, they'll share what it took to gain traction, the real-world hurdles they're navigating today—like data integration, organizational alignment, and measurement—and how they're shaping strategies built not just for today's performance, but for long-term growth and relevance.

In today's fragmented media world, it takes A LOT to be successful. Consumer trust, massive datasets, scale, measurement, ROI, automation, AI...the list goes on. To succeed you have to have ALL of it. That's why retail media networks are killing it in the crowded landscape right now. Hear from industry veteran and Best Buy Ads President, Lisa Valentino, on how Best Buy is redefining retail media and using its robust dataset, scale and trust of the consumer to help brands drive results.

Commerce media is evolving at lightning speed—what started as retail media has expanded into a broader ecosystem spanning marketplaces, non-endemic advertisers, and new digital storefronts. In this forward-looking session, we'll explore the latest innovations shaping the future of commerce media, from offsite targeting and second-party data collaboration to the integration of AI and real-time optimization across the consumer journey.

The physical store is evolving into a powerful media channel—and it's happening faster than you think. From digital displays and smart carts to connected shelves and real-time targeting via mobile, in-store commerce media is becoming a critical part of the omnichannel strategy. This session will explore how retailers and brands are turning the in-store environment into a dynamic, measurable, and data-driven media opportunity.

As commerce media matures, so does the demand for better interoperability, transparency, and accountability. This session dives into how brands, retailers, and media partners are redefining collaboration—breaking down silos to unlock actionable insights and enable more accurate, real-time measurement across channels.

How brands can win in a world where making it to the screen means making the sale.

Digital platforms have become more than just a place for discovery, they are now a full-funnel commerce engine. In this session, we'll explore how brands, platforms, and creators are leveraging content to drive measurable outcomes in a fragmented digital landscape. From shoppable posts and livestreams to creator-led conversions and AI-powered recommendations, this conversation will unpack what's working, what's next, and how to build authentic consumer engagement and drive real business results.

The lines between trade, shopper, retail media, and brand marketing are blurring. As digital signals increasingly influence in-store behavior, brands and retailers are reimagining how to collaborate, measure, and activate across the full path to purchase.

An in-depth look of the inaugural IAB study on the effectiveness of retail audio advertising. Ryan Fuss, CRO of Stingray Advertising, will detail new data on in-store consumer behavior and the measured effectiveness of audio in driving awareness and sales. The presentation also covers best practices for implementation, offering a clear framework for integrating in-store audio to influence the final moment of purchase within an omnichannel strategy.

Retail media's impact goes far beyond ROAS. In this session, Criteo shares insights from The Retail Media Ripple Effect report, showing how campaigns drive growth across the full funnel—from new-to-brand conversions to organic lift and halo sales. Backed by global data, attendees will gain actionable strategies to optimize spend, layer formats, and scale incrementality across retailers.

IAB will unveil never-before-seen findings from a first-of-its-kind study capturing how consumers actually use AI to shop. From real-time, screen-recorded interactions to quant-backed insights, this research reveals the behaviors, expectations, and friction points shaping today's AI-powered shopping experience.

Artificial intelligence is rapidly transforming how consumers discover, research, and purchase products. This session begins with a dynamic presentation of brand-new research highlighting how AI is reshaping the buyer's journey—from hyper-personalized recommendations to the rise of conversational commerce. Immediately following, a panel of industry experts will unpack what these shifts mean for brands, platforms, and the future of engagement.

As commerce media evolves beyond traditional retail environments, a new class of media networks is emerging - across travel, hospitality, automotive, entertainment, QSR, and other non-retail verticals. These platforms are redefining the way brands connect with consumers in transactional moments outside the checkout aisle.

In this debate-style format, we will hear from industry leaders on one side that argue for why incrementality is the gold standard in commerce media measurement - already shaping smarter strategies and perfecting outcomes. On the other side, we will hear from leaders who believe incrementality is a noble and worthwhile goal, but that current industry constraints make true, holistic business growth measurement exceedingly difficult.