In November, we brought together leaders across mobile growth, programmatic media, streaming, and measurement for CTV Live! New York, an invite-only event hosted by Smadex in partnership with Adjust and Magnite.

The goal was simple: cut through the industry noise and show what it actually takes to scale CTV as a performance channel heading into 2026.
A packed room and an engaged audience made one thing clear:

Advertisers aren’t asking whether CTV works anymore; they’re asking how to do it right.

I sat down with our guest speaker from Duolingo to talk about how one of the most sophisticated UA teams in the world approaches CTV.

Duolingo views CTV as a scalable, brand-safe way to reach high-intent users that mobile alone can’t efficiently capture. Their recent tests with Smadex, one broad and one DMA-specific, have reinforced that CTV can be a net-new growth engine when run with discipline and clear measurement frameworks.

We touched on:

• How CTV complements mobile UA rather than cannibalizing it
• Why narrow, hypothesis-driven testing accelerates learning
• What separates CTV-native creative from simply repurposing mobile assets

He also shared examples of their standout creatives and how their team evaluates what resonates on the big screen. His transparency and rigor set a high bar for brands entering or scaling in CTV.

Next, Trevor Ford from Yotta and Kevin Kinnison from Adjust took the stage with one of the most honest case studies I’ve seen.

Back in 2021, Yotta ran an early CTV test that delivered unbelievably low CPIs—but ultimately provided no real incremental value. Organic installs didn’t move, other channels appeared to underperform, and attribution was muddy at best. It was a classic example of how CTV used to be: shiny on the surface, structurally fragile underneath.

Fast-forward to 2025.

This time, Yotta partnered with Smadex and Adjust with a focus on clean test design, airtight attribution rules, and incrementality measurement built in from the start. The results were completely different:

Clear lift across total installs and organic installs, with no cannibalization.

Their message was straightforward and resonated across the room:

1. Align attribution and settings before spending a dollar
2. Test for incrementality, not artificially cheap CPIs
3. Start focused: one geo, one KPI, one narrative

This session crystallized a key theme of the afternoon: performance CTV works when approached like performance, not like TV.

We closed with a lively panel featuring more industry experts. A few themes stood out:

Brands are treating CTV with the same expectations they put on mobile: measurable, repeatable, and accountable. The days of treating CTV as a “brand-only” channel are over.

Incrementality frameworks, cleaner attribution, and more stable data pipelines are giving marketers confidence that wasn’t possible just a few years ago.

Magnite spoke to the rising expectation for premium, fraud-free supply paths and brand-safe environments. Advertisers want clarity on where impressions originate, and partners who can guarantee it.

We heard examples of how CTV-native storytelling dramatically outperforms “mobile-on-TV” assets. AI-powered tools, QR-enabled experiences, and platform-specific storytelling are pushing the channel forward.

Panelists aligned on this point: as tools mature, CTV will soon rival mobile in precision, transparency, and performance.

Throughout the event, the story that emerged was bigger than any single session:

The brands that win in CTV are the ones that test deliberately, measure performance, and lean into creative that’s built for the big screen.

And at Smadex, this is exactly the framework we’re building for advertisers:

• Precise, controlled testing environments
• Transparent, premium supply through top partners
• Creative strategies purpose-built for the big screen

Whether the goal is incremental reach, install growth, retargeting, or multi-screen storytelling, we’re helping brands realize the full performance potential of CTV.

What struck me most during the conversations, Q&A, and the networking that followed is how aligned the room was around a single truth:

CTV isn’t the future, it’s the now.
And the brands that treat it with rigor will gain a real competitive edge.

A huge thank-you to Adjust, Magnite, Duolingo, Yotta, Philo, Mike Brooks, and everyone who joined us. I’m excited for what’s ahead and what we’ll share together at the next CTV Live.