As CES 2026 kicks off in Las Vegas, Amazon Ads is already engaging with advertisers and agencies to map out priorities for the year. Alan Moss, VP of global ad sales at Amazon Ads, told AdWeek that these early discussions are meant to help the company understand what brands want to focus on. “It’s the beginning of understanding customers, advertisers, and agencies’ goals for the year, to work backward from them and prioritize them,” Moss said.

Amazon is positioning its advertising offerings in 2026. Moss said the company will focus on scaling AI tools, reach, and expand live sports placement opportunities.

AI tools for campaigns and creative

Moss said Amazon is briefing advertisers on AI-powered campaign and creative tools. This includes systems that generate creative briefs and a Full Funnel Campaigns tool set to launch in Q1 2026. The tool will recommend budgets, audiences, and strategies across ad formats. In addition, an Ads Agent will help explain campaign approaches in natural language. 

The company is already using AI to automate the creative process. Amazon’s previous efforts included unifying ad management under a single view with its unified Campaign Manager. This was launched as part of its new AI-powered ad solutions at the 2025 unBoxed conference in November.

In September last year, it launched a new agentic AI tool to create video and display ads. According to Moss, 2026 will focus on applying AI in live campaigns, building on the progress of 2025. “If [2025] is any measure, the capabilities at the beginning of this year and then toward the end were exponential in how the technology and fundamental AI capabilities advanced. I think that will continue, and like other parts of our business, this is a year for application and activation of that,” he told AdWeek.

Extending reach with Authenticated Graph

According to Moss, the company is focused on how to extend its reach beyond Amazon’s owned platforms. The company is highlighting its Authenticated Graph as a tool that lets brands target their audience online using verified data rather than guesses.

Over the past year, Amazon has expanded this capability through partnerships, including Roku, and says it can now reach most U.S. households by combining first-party and third-party supply.

Amazon DSP and programmatic inventory

Amazon is emphasizing programmatic advertising as part of its 2026 strategy. Through Amazon DSP, brands can access premium video, streaming, and display inventory in one platform. Last year, Amazon partnered with Netflix and Disney so advertisers using DSP can plan, buy, and measure inventory across these channels directly.

Moss told AdWeek that part of the company’s plan is to help drive programmatic advertising for brands this year. “One of the things that we very much talk about is the Amazon DSP,” he told AdWeek. According to him, programmatic buying is increasingly part of how brands approach premium media. These programmatic integrations are part of a shift where TV and digital inventory converge inside demand-side platforms, giving ad buyers a central workflow for planning video, CTV, and display.

“Programmatic has always been important for us,” Moss said. “I think now you see every advertiser embracing it, embracing the data that comes with it, the flexibility that comes with it, and the different ways of buying that create flexibility for them. They want one tool to simplify it.”

Live sports advertising opportunities

Live sports is another key area for 2026. At CES, Amazon is discussing with brands how to integrate creative content with live action through contextual ad placements. The company has expanded Prime Video’s sports roster to include NBA and golf alongside NFL content. Its ad-supported tier now reaches an average of more than 315 million monthly viewers globally, up from about 200 million previously reported.

Moss said that more live sports inventory is planned for 2026, including coverage of the Winter Olympics and the NBA. Amazon is also offering ways for advertisers to buy ad space during key moments through bidding and its Live Event Optimizer tool.

‍