IAB Unveils Powerhouse Annual Leadership Meeting Agenda Featuring Global AI Advisor Zack Kass, Award-Winning Actor Kevin Bacon, Creator & Entrepreneur Remi Bader, and Nissan U.S. CMO Allyson Witherspoon

ALM Remains the Industry's Catalyst for Big Ideas and Bold Moves Addressing AI, Innovation, and the Future of Digital Media

IAB 2026 Events: The Ultimate Power Lineup Fueling the Marketing and Media Ecosystem

NEW YORK, Dec. 4, 2025 /PRNewswire/ -- The Interactive Advertising Bureau (IAB), the leading trade association for the digital advertising industry, today announced the agenda for its 2026 IAB Annual Leadership Meeting (ALM), taking place February 1–3, 2026, in Palm Springs, California. Alongside ALM, IAB also revealed its full 2026 tentpole events slate that will shape innovation and policy across the digital media and marketing ecosystem.

At a time when the industry is navigating rapid transformation due to the rise of AI, ALM 2026 is built to gather and align industry leaders around the real issues that define the year ahead. Under the banner, "It Starts Here," ALM will again serve as the definitive gathering where executives from brands, agencies, publishers, platforms, and adtech convene to align priorities, provoke action, embrace disruption, and chart the path forward for the digital ecosystem.

"We're entering 2026 and it's an entirely different environment from years past," said David Cohen, CEO, IAB. "The entire value chain is being transformed and we're only at the beginning of that process. It's impossible for any single one of us to know what's coming next, but when we gather together and share  perspectives, together we can see much further ahead."

In addition to Zack Kass, global AI advisor, Kevin Bacon, director, award-winning actor, musician, and philanthropist, creator & entrepreneur, Remi Bader, Nissan U.S. CMO Allyson Witherspoon, and "On Brand with Jimmy Fallon" co-host and "The Real Housewives of Beverly Hills" star Bozoma Saint John, this year's featured speakers include:

• Jamie Auslander, SVP, Research, Measurement and Analytics, Infillion
• Jonathan Halvorson, Chief Digital and Marketing Officer, Kenvue
• Jennifer Brown, Head of US Influencer Marketing & Talent Partnerships, SHEIN
• Keri Degroote, SVP Sales Research & Analytics, SiriusXM Media
• Radhika Duggal, Vice President, Chief Marketing Officer, Major League Soccer
• Jeremi Gorman, Chief Revenue Officer of Fanatics Advertising, Fanatics
• Zack Kass, Global AI Advisor and Former Head of Go-To-Market at OpenAI
• Jesser, Creator & Founder, Bucketsquad
• Marie Lee, Chief Marketing Officer, Princess Cruises
• Keith Lehman, Global Director, Digital Commerce Marketing and Retail Media, Colgate-Palmolive
• Austin Leonard, General Manager of DG Media Network, Dollar General
• Abi Subramanian, Group VP, Loyalty, Walgreens Advertising Group & Owned Asset Monetization, Walgreens
• Kendall Toole, Fitness Instructor, Content Creator, Lifestyle Entrepreneur and Mental Health Advocate
• Gabi Viljoen, Vice President & Head of eCommerce, Nestlé Health Science U.S.
• Heidi Zak, Co-Founder and CEO, ThirdLove, San Francisco, CA

For the latest on ALM speakers, please visit: https://www.iab.com/events/annual-leadership-meeting-2026/

ALM 2026 Headliners and Themes Reflect Industry's Urgent Priorities
From generative creativity to autonomous agents, AI is the defining force reshaping the industry and a thread that runs through every session at ALM. This year's programming consists of a three-day immersive experience that goes beyond hype to explore practical, scalable AI applications for media, marketing, and measurement:

• Beyond Human: When AI Becomes Your Audience: AI is rewriting every rule—from targeting to attribution. With agents increasingly making decisions before humans even enter the funnel, this theme explores how marketers must adapt strategy, restructure operations, and design for both human and machine attention.
• Commerce Unboxed: Rethinking Retail, Media, and the Consumer Journey: The retail media revolution has grown into something bigger: commerce media. This track will unpack the next evolution of commerce media, where AI-driven agents reshape how consumers discover and shop, shopper and trade marketing converge with retail media, and transparency becomes both a necessity and a challenge. Attendees will discuss where commerce media is headed next into social, content, and new digital touchpoints that blur the line between inspiration and transaction.
• Fortifying the Foundation: Measurement for a Modern Media World: Fragmentation, outdated models, and inconsistent standards have been holding back progress. This track will explore what it takes to truly modernize measurement from redefining model inputs and campaign attributes to building frameworks that reflect today's consumer behavior and tomorrow's regulatory expectations.
• Storytelling Evolved: Influence, Imagination, and Impact: Creators are shaping culture and challenging the rules of advertising. Sessions will explore new definitions of ROI, creative formats fueled by AI, and strategies for deeper brand-creator collaboration. The future of influence isn't just about going viral, it's about going deeper on how brands, platforms, and creators can better collaborate, compensate, and innovate.
• The New World of Screens, Signals, and Outcomes: The video landscape is more fragmented—and more powerful—than ever. With CTV, DOOH, video podcasting, and social platforms colliding, this track will examine how to unify planning, unlock outcome-based buying, and move beyond legacy metrics to define the future of video.
• Data, Identity, and Privacy in a Reshaped Ecosystem: As consumer privacy rises, identity continues to become scarce, and accelerating legislative activity, this theme tackles the evolving architecture of addressability. The track will discuss IP risk in AI, global privacy patchworks, consent frameworks, and how to design for trust while staying competitive.

The full ALM agenda can be accessed here: https://www.iab.com/events/annual-leadership-meeting-2026/#agenda

Additionally, at ALM 2026, IAB will release its annual State of Data Report, the essential guide to navigating major shifts in digital advertising. This year's edition provides actionable insights into today's measurement frameworks—from marketing mix modeling (MMM) and attribution to outcomes and incrementality—and critically examines the practical role of AI, clarifying what's achievable today and what will reshape the industry over the next 1-2 years.

IAB's 2026 Tentpole Events Lineup
Beyond ALM, IAB's tentpole events serve as touchpoints for progress across AI, audio, video, gaming, commerce, policy, and more:

• IAB NewFronts | March 23–26 | NYC | Hybrid
• IAB Public Policy & Legal Summit | March 31 | Washington, D.C. | In-Person
• IAB Connected Commerce Summit | April 14 | NYC | In-Person
• IAB CreatorFronts | September 15 | NYC | Hybrid
• IAB Podcast Upfront | September 16 | NYC | Hybrid
• IAB PlayFronts | September 17 | NYC | Hybrid
• IAB Privacy Compliance Salon | October 7 | Seattle | In-Person
• IAB State Privacy Law Summit | November 18 | NYC | In-Person

For more information and updates regarding IAB events, visit: https://www.iab.com/events/

About IAB
The Interactive Advertising Bureau (IAB) empowers the media and marketing industries to thrive in the digital economy. Its membership comprises more than 700 leading media companies, brands, agencies, and the technology firms responsible for selling, delivering, and optimizing digital ad marketing campaigns. The trade group fields critical research on interactive advertising, while also educating brands, agencies, and the wider business community on the importance of digital marketing. In affiliation with the IAB Tech Lab, IAB develops technical standards and solutions. IAB is committed to professional development and elevating the knowledge, skills, expertise, and collaboration of the workforce across the industry. Through the work of its public policy office in Washington, D.C., the trade association advocates for its members and promotes the value of the interactive advertising industry to legislators and policymakers. Founded in 1996, IAB is headquartered in New York City.

SOURCE Interactive Advertising Bureau (IAB)