PubMatic
- Company typePublic
- Founded2006
- HeadquartersRedwood City, United States
- Headcount1,001–5,000
- GTM typeB2B
- OfferingSoftware
What PubMatic does
PubMatic is a publicly traded (NASDAQ: PUBM) AI-powered ad tech company founded in 2006 and headquartered in Redwood City, California. The company operates a programmatic advertising platform connecting buyers, publishers, data partners, and commerce media across CTV, mobile app, and omnichannel environments. Its core sell-side platform (PubMatic SSP) processes 2.7 trillion advertiser bids per day across 1,028 billion daily ad impressions, with a product suite spanning header bidding (OpenWrap), identity resolution (Identity Hub), data connectivity (Connect), direct-to-supply activation (Activate), commerce media (Convert), and curated audience deals (Auction Packages). The platform architecture is anchored by AgenticOS, an AI operating system coordinating more than 20 specialized agents across the full campaign lifecycle for autonomous media buying, supplemented by Decision Fabric—a containerization layer enabling partner decisioning models to run natively inside the programmatic supply path at ~1ms inference latency.
PubMatic generates revenue primarily through transaction fees (take rate) charged to publishers on programmatic advertising spend processed through its SSP platform, with additional emerging revenue from AI-powered platform services including AgenticOS, Activate, Connect, and data/curation capabilities (growing 80%+ year-over-year). The go-to-market combines direct enterprise sales teams with dedicated country managers (including a newly appointed Country Manager for Canada), agency channel partnerships (Untapped Growth, Brkthru with 1,000+ brands across 235 agencies, Havas), and technology integrations with content intelligence (Gracenote), identity (PayPal Ads ID covering 400M+ accounts), ad servers (FreeWheel), and creative technology providers (Celtra, BrightLine, KERV). The company serves publishers, CTV/OTT publishers, app developers, media buyers/agencies, and commerce media platforms across the US, Canada, EMEA (UK, Spain, France, Netherlands), and APAC (Japan, Australia, India).
With approximately 1,000 employees globally and offices in the US, India (engineering/R&D), Canada, and Japan, PubMatic has achieved 40 consecutive quarters of positive adjusted EBITDA and holds $144.9 million in cash with no debt as of Q1 2026. The company made one acquisition (Martin, a media measurement and reporting platform, in September 2022) and has launched multiple product innovations including Creator Marketplace (first programmatic CTV auction for creators), Live Sports Marketplace, and Creative Innovation Suite. The company faces executive transition with the 2026 departures of the Chief Growth Officer (15-year tenure) and Chief Revenue Officer (13-year tenure), with an external search firm engaged to hire a global CRO.
PubMatic firmographics
Firmographics- Name
- PubMatic
- Legal name
- PubMatic, Inc.
- Website
- https://pubmatic.com
- Company type
- Public
- Founded year
- 2006
- Operating status
- Operating
- Headcount range
- 1,001–5,000 employees
- Ownership category
- akta.pro rank
PubMatic industry classification
Industry- Product category
- Programmatic Advertising Technology
- NAICS
- Advertising Agencies (54181), Media Buying Agencies (54183), Other Services Related to Advertising (541890)
- SIC
- Services-Advertising (7310)
- akta.pro primary industry
- Ad Networks & Exchanges (Programmatic RTB) (BPAMALAA)
- akta.pro secondary industries
- Programmatic Display & Video (DSP/RTB) (BPAFACAC), Digital & Programmatic Media Buying (Display, Video, CTV, Audio) (BPAFABAB), App Monetization & Subscription Management Platforms (BPAMADAI)
Keywords
Where PubMatic is headquartered
LocationHeadquarters
- HQ city
- Redwood City
- HQ country
- United States
- HQ region
- North America
Offices4 records
Markets served
PubMatic business model
Business model- GTM type
- B2B
- Offering type
- Software
- Cost components
- Technology or R&D, Personnel, Operations, Marketing or Sales, Infrastructure
Revenue model
- Programmatic Advertising Transaction Fees: PubMatic earns transaction fees (take rate) on programmatic advertising spend processed through its SSP platform, charging publishers a percentage of ad revenue generated
- Platform Services and AI Products: Revenue from AI-powered solutions including AgenticOS, Activate, Connect, and data/curation capabilities; emerging revenues growing 80%+ YoY from AI products
- Identity and Data Solutions: Integration with identity solutions (PayPal Ads ID) and data partnerships generating revenue from deterministic identity verification and audience targeting
Pricing tiers
| Model | Billing | Price |
|---|---|---|
| Transaction based/ take rate | Pay-as-you-go | Enterprise programmatic advertising platform with customized pricing |
Go-to-market motion2 records
Distribution channels4 records
Marketing channels5 records
PubMatic product offering
Product offeringCore offering
PubMatic provides an AI-powered programmatic advertising sell-side platform (SSP) that enables publishers, app developers, and CTV/OTT publishers to monetize ad inventory while giving buyers and agencies access to premium demand through real-time auctions. The platform is anchored by AgenticOS, an AI operating system coordinating specialized agents for autonomous campaign planning, execution, and optimization across CTV, mobile app, and open web environments. PubMatic processes 2.7 trillion advertiser bids per day across 1,028 billion daily ad impressions with sub-1ms inference latency.
Product overview
PubMatic is an AI-powered ad tech company delivering measurable advertising performance through an intelligent, unified platform connecting buyers, publishers, data partners, and commerce media across CTV, mobile app, and omnichannel environments. The platform architecture centers on PubMatic SSP as the core sell-side platform, complemented by AgenticOS as the AI operating system for autonomous agentic media buying. Buyer-facing solutions include Activate (direct-to-supply activation with supply path optimization), Auction Packages (curated audience deals), and Connect (data connectivity). Publisher solutions include OpenWrap (header bidding), Identity Hub (identity management), and Connect. Commerce media is addressed through Convert. Additional modules include Decision Fabric (partner model containerization), Creative Innovation Suite (cross-screen ad formats), Creator Marketplace (programmatic CTV for creators), and Live Sports Marketplace (premium sports inventory activation). The platform processes 2.7 trillion advertiser bids per day across 1,028 billion daily ad impressions.
Differentiator
Problem solved
Functional benefit
Brands
- AgenticOS: AI operating system for autonomous agentic media buying, enabling coordinated sequence of specialized agents operating across the full campaign lifecycle
- Activate
- OpenWrap
- Connect
- Identity Hub
- Decision Fabric
- Creator Marketplace
- Live Sports Marketplace
- Creative Innovation Suite
- Auction Packages
- Convert
Products and services
- PubMatic SSP PubMatic's sell-side platform (SSP) enabling publishers, app developers, and CTV/OTT publishers to maximize ad revenue through AI-powered yield optimization, premium demand access, and transparent insights across CTV, mobile app, and omnichannel environments. Also serves buyers with direct supply access.
- AgenticOS AI operating system for autonomous agentic media buying, enabling AI agents to plan, execute, and optimize programmatic campaigns through coordinated sequences of specialized agents operating across the full campaign lifecycle. Coordinates over 20 specialized agents with 100% customer retention on agentic campaigns.
- Connect Data connectivity platform enabling publishers and buyers to leverage data partners and curation capabilities for enhanced audience targeting and inventory optimization. Available for both publishers and buyers.
- Identity Hub Identity resolution and management solution enabling publishers to control data monetization and audience identification across programmatic environments.
- OpenWrap Header bidding solution enabling publishers to maximize yield by allowing multiple demand sources to bid simultaneously before the ad server call.
- Activate Direct-to-supply media activation platform enabling buyers to execute programmatic campaigns with supply path optimization, delivering 32% lower CPA in demonstrated case studies.
- Auction Packages Buyer-facing solution enabling media buying with curated audiences and full transparency through auction package deals.
- Convert Commerce media platform combining core monetization and customer acquisition capabilities for retail and marketplace environments.
- Decision Fabric Containerization layer built on AgenticOS that enables partner decisioning models to run natively inside the programmatic supply path for real-time audience qualification at the moment of auction.
- Creative Innovation Suite Cross-screen creative management suite integrated into AgenticOS, providing access to custom ad formats from partners including Celtra, BrightLine, and KERV for premium CTV, mobile, and other screens.
- Creator Marketplace First programmatic CTV auction connecting independent creator media companies' premium CTV inventory with programmatic and emerging agentic demand.
- Live Sports Marketplace AI-powered opportunity for programmatic activation centered around premium live sports inventory, enabling buyers to layer incremental scale onto live sports campaigns with efficiency improvements.
Quantifiable outcome
- 53% lower weighted average CPMs for premium CTV inventory
- +14 more outcomes
Companies that use PubMatic
Customer profileNamed customers10 records
Segments5 records
Ideal customer profiles5 records
PubMatic technology and API
TechnologyTechnology focussed Yes
API detail
- Has API
- Yes
- API docs
- API detail
Core technology
AI maturity
App detail
Integration16 records
AI capability11 records
Feature5 records
PubMatic partnerships and signals
Strategic signalPartnerships
Ten partnerships are on record, tiered flagship, core and minor.
- MeatEaterflagshipInaugural launch partner for Creator Marketplace, the first programmatic CTV auction connecting independent creator media companies' premium CTV inventory with programmatic and agentic demand
- FreeWheelcoreAd server partner for Creator Marketplace enabling programmatic activation of creator CTV inventory
- Holmes MediaminorDevelopment partner for Creator Marketplace supporting platform implementation
- Gracenote (Nielsen)coreStrategic partnership integrating Gracenote's content intelligence including episode-level data and live sports schedule data into PubMatic's programmatic CTV platform for real-time content-matched bidding
- Havas Media NetworkcorePartnership launching Spain's first agentic CTV campaign for Telefónica's Movistar brand, delivering 18% below target CPM
- AnimmoovcoreStrategic partnership combining Animmoov's AI-driven creative technology and interactive ad formats with PubMatic's premium inventory across CTV, mobile, and desktop for APAC advertisers and publishers
- PayPalcoreTechnology partner for PayPal Ads ID integration providing deterministic identity verification using verified commerce data from 400M+ PayPal/Venmo accounts across CTV, open web, and native environments
- BrkthrucoreStrategic partner managing media for 1,000+ brands across 235 agencies to operationalize agentic workflows at scale through AgenticOS
- AdRollcoreAgent-to-agent integration using Model Context Protocol enabling AdRoll's demand-side AI agents to query PubMatic's supply-side deal diagnostics in real time
- Untapped GrowthcorePartnership integrating AgenticOS technology into Untapped Growth's multibillion-dollar media buying consortium for independent agencies, enabling proprietary buyer agents
Scale indicators9 records
Recent moves6 records
Expansion highlights6 records
PubMatic competitors and assessment
Company assessmentDirect peers
- Magnite: Magnite is the largest independent sell-side platform specializing in CTV, serving publishers and buyers with programmatic ad inventory across OTT and online video. Like PubMatic, Magnite operates an SSP, competes for the same publisher relationships, and has launched agentic/AI capabilities — making it the most direct head-to-head comparable.
- OpenX: OpenX is an independent SSP that competes with PubMatic for publisher inventory and operates programmatic exchanges across CTV, mobile, and web. OpenX and PubMatic were co-named in the CNN CIPA privacy litigation, illustrating their parallel position in the supply-side ecosystem.
- Index Exchange: Index Exchange is a global independent supply-side platform focused on programmatic ad auctions across display, video, and CTV. It is a direct SSP competitor to PubMatic for publisher inventory and buyer demand.
- Adform: Adform is an independent global ad tech platform offering DSP, SSP, DMP, and creative solutions. It competes with PubMatic across both supply and demand sides of programmatic advertising, particularly in EMEA markets.
- The Trade Desk: The Trade Desk is the leading independent demand-side platform for programmatic advertising and overlaps with PubMatic's buyer-facing Activate product. Both companies are pursuing AI-driven media buying (Kokai vs. AgenticOS), making them direct competitors in the agentic AI advertising race.
- Equativ: Equativ (formerly Smart AdServer) is a global independent ad tech platform offering an SSP, ad server, and curation capabilities. It is a mid-sized direct peer to PubMatic serving publishers and buyers across CTV and omnichannel environments.
Broad incumbents
- Yahoo (Yahoo Advertising): Yahoo's ad tech business (DSP and SSP) competes with PubMatic across the programmatic stack. Notably, Yahoo is a co-creator of the AdCP agentic protocol alongside PubMatic and Optable, making them both partners and competitors in agentic AI advertising.
- Google Ad Manager (AdX): Google's Ad Manager/AdX is the dominant walled-garden ad exchange and SSP, processing the majority of programmatic supply globally. It competes with PubMatic on both supply (publishers) and demand (agencies/brands) sides and represents the largest competitive threat due to its bundled stack and data advantages.
- Amazon Publisher Services: Amazon Publisher Services (including Transparent Ad Marketplace) is a major walled-garden header bidding and SSP alternative. It competes with PubMatic's OpenWrap and SSP products for publisher relationships and is part of Amazon's broader ad business.
Emerging players
- LiveRamp: LiveRamp provides identity resolution and data collaboration infrastructure used across the programmatic ecosystem. While not a direct SSP, it competes with PubMatic's Identity Hub and Connect data products in the addressability and identity layer critical to agentic and CTV advertising.
Market position
Strengths5 records
Weaknesses5 records
Competitive moat6 records
Key risks6 records
Key highlights7 records
Customer concentration
PubMatic social profiles
Digital presencePubMatic compliance and trust
Trust signalCompliance6 records
PubMatic financial estimates
Financial estimateRevenue estimate
Valuation estimate
PubMatic leadership team
Management profileNumber of profiles
Profiles7 records
PubMatic subsidiaries and ownership
Company hierarchySubsidiaries1 record
PubMatic funding detail
Funding detailFunding overview
Funding rounds6 records
Investors7 records
Funding detail is available on the Subscription and Enterprise plan.Contact sales →
PubMatic M&A and investment
M&A and investmentM&A4 records
Investments
M&A and investment is available on the Subscription and Enterprise plan.Contact sales →
Frequently asked questions about PubMatic
What does PubMatic do?
PubMatic provides an AI-powered programmatic advertising sell-side platform (SSP) that enables publishers, app developers, and CTV/OTT publishers to monetize ad inventory while giving buyers and agencies access to premium demand through real-time auctions. The platform is anchored by AgenticOS, an AI operating system coordinating specialized agents for autonomous campaign planning, execution, and optimization across CTV, mobile app, and open web environments. PubMatic processes 2.7 trillion advertiser bids per day across 1,028 billion daily ad impressions with sub-1ms inference latency.
Is PubMatic a public or private company?
PubMatic is a public company. It is classified as public and is currently operating.
When was PubMatic founded?
PubMatic was founded in 2006. It employs 1,001 to 5,000 people.
Where is PubMatic based?
PubMatic is headquartered in Redwood City, United States, in the North America region.
How does PubMatic make money?
Three revenue lines are on record. Programmatic Advertising Transaction Fees are the primary driver. The others are platform Services and AI Products and identity and Data Solutions.
Who are PubMatic's main competitors?
Direct peers on record are Magnite, OpenX, Index Exchange, Adform, The Trade Desk and Equativ. Broad incumbents are Yahoo (Yahoo Advertising), Google Ad Manager (AdX) and Amazon Publisher Services. LiveRamp is listed as an emerging player.
Does PubMatic have an API?
Yes. PubMatic exposes a public API. Developer documentation is at help.pubmatic.com.
What industry is PubMatic in?
PubMatic's product category is Programmatic Advertising Technology. Its primary akta.pro industry code is BPAMALAA, Ad Networks & Exchanges (Programmatic RTB), with a secondary code of BPAFACAC, Programmatic Display & Video (DSP/RTB). Its NAICS code is 54181 and its SIC code is 7310.