Amazon's Aggressive Push to Dominate Adtech: How It's Challenging The Trade Desk and Google with Data, DSP Upgrades, and Strategic Partnerships

Amazon is aggressively pursuing dominance in the digital advertising space, aiming to overtake industry leaders The Trade Desk and Google in the demand-side platform (DSP) race. Under CEO Andy Jassy, Amazon has made its advertising business a top strategic priority, leveraging its vast shopping data, technological investments, and high-profile hires to build a powerful, integrated adtech ecosystem. The company’s ambition is clear: become the world’s leading DSP by combining its deep consumer insights with advanced ad buying tools. While Amazon’s ad revenue already ranks third globally—behind only Google and Meta—its DSP has evolved from a clunky, underutilized system into a competitive force. This transformation began in 2021 with a series of key hires from major adtech players, including Google, Meta, Roku, and AppNexus. These experts helped overhaul the platform’s architecture, fixing long-standing bugs and improving user experience. One major upgrade was integrating the Amazon DSP with the Amazon Marketing Cloud (AMC), a data clean room that allows advertisers to securely combine Amazon’s first-party shopping data with their own customer data. This enables highly targeted campaigns and measurable outcomes—such as identifying users who added items to their cart but didn’t buy—giving Amazon a unique edge. According to Daniel Wallis, CEO of VOW, an Amazon Ads partner, this integration is a “massive win” that sets Amazon apart. Amazon has also expanded its reach into TV advertising by launching ads on Prime Video and securing exclusive partnerships with Disney and Roku. These deals give Amazon access to premium, ad-supported streaming inventory that competitors lack. With Prime Video now defaulting to ad-supported viewing, Amazon is well-positioned to surpass YouTube as the top smart TV ad seller in the US by 2027, according to Morgan Stanley. Pricing has also become a key weapon. Amazon’s DSP fees typically range from 4% to 8%, with some clients paying as low as 1% or even no fee—significantly undercutting the industry average of 10% to 20%. This aggressive pricing strategy appeals to agencies and advertisers under pressure to reduce costs. Despite Amazon’s rapid progress, The Trade Desk has downplayed the threat. CEO Jeff Green has claimed Amazon isn’t a direct competitor, emphasizing The Trade Desk’s independence and commitment to open web advertising. But industry insiders argue that Amazon’s integrated model—owning data, audience insights, ad tech, and media inventory—makes it a far more compelling partner for many advertisers. As the open web loses traffic due to AI-driven content and reduced browsing, advertisers increasingly seek platforms that deliver measurable results. Amazon’s ability to connect data, targeting, and media under one roof gives it a decisive advantage. Experts believe The Trade Desk may soon need to reconsider its strategy, possibly by acquiring media or data assets to stay competitive. Amazon’s growing influence is evident in its advertising segment’s performance: it now accounts for 9.36% of total company revenue, up 23% year-over-year. With continued investment, strategic partnerships, and a relentless focus on execution, Amazon is no longer just a player in the adtech world—it’s becoming its most formidable challenger.