The news: AI agents are starting to move TV advertising beyond standard programmatic pipes. NBCUniversal recently tested agentic AI to sell ads around a live NFL game, aiming to automate complex, rule-heavy linear TV packages that OpenRTB systems can’t handle, per Digiday.

Agents for TV ads, framed as “premium automation,” use AI to manage bespoke sponsorships, ad-pod placement (first, middle, last), and cross-game takeovers—handling the forecasting, sequencing, and separation logic that once required manual input.

“AI agents can enable the automated buying and selling of traditional TV’s complex ad packages in a way that today’s programmatic advertising systems can’t support,” Ryan McConville, NBCUniversal’s chief product officer, told Digiday in a podcast.

Why it’s worth watching: TV loses its distinct value as more inventory flows into automation systems built for digital display. One example is Google Display & Video 360 (DV360) which buys web display, video, native, connected TV (CTV) and even linear-style TV through the same programmatic pipe.

Agentic AI automates TV’s orchestration layer without diluting premium formats.

• AI agents can interpret prompts such as owning the first pod of the first half, the last slot in every second-half pod, and a post-game takeover during football games. That level of orchestration has historically required teams of planners and traffickers.
• New frameworks such as IAB Tech Lab’s Agentic Direct spec aim to standardize how these agents transact high-value TV inventory.

AI also handles forecasting, sequencing, and cross-platform packaging while preserving bespoke sponsorship logic and pricing integrity. It can balance demand, audience data, and brand safety constraints to protect high-value formats instead of flattening them into standard impressions.

AI agents compress weeks of planning into minutes and unlock complex cross-game or cross-platform packages that were once too onerous to pursue. 

Implications for brands: Consider AI agents for TV ads as a control layer, not a cost-cutting tool. The advantage lies in precision ownership of cultural moments.

Start by piloting agent-driven buys around tentpole live events. Negotiate clear data access and workflow transparency before scale locks in, and shape creative around sequential, pod-based storytelling that builds across placements.

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