Forced Implementation of Kokai on TTD Platform Meeting with Resistance from Users

The Trade Desk's Q2 2025 Shows Strong Growth Amidst Platform Transition

The digital advertising market is experiencing a significant shift, with The Trade Desk leading the charge. The company, known for its programmatic advertising platform, has seen over 70% of client spend flowing through its latest offering, Kokai, as of Q2 2025.

The evolution of Kokai has been focused on enhancing campaign management efficiency. Recent updates have introduced tools designed to increase control and visibility of ads across channels, while also distributing artificial intelligence capabilities across all aspects of the digital media buying process. These advancements include predictive clearing for optimal bidding, impression scoring based on advertiser relevance, improved measurement and forecasting, increased resilience without identifiers, budget optimization, and KPI scoring.

The company's Q1 2025 guidance projects revenue of at least $575 million, translating to approximately 17% year-over-year growth. This strong financial performance is complemented by The Trade Desk's robust financial fundamentals. The company currently holds $1.369 billion in cash and cash equivalents, $552 million in short-term investments, and a current ratio near 2. Customer retention rates exceed 95%, and the platform processed $12 billion in gross spend in FY24.

However, the transition to Kokai has not been without controversy. The forced migration has generated resistance from programmatic advertising professionals due to concerns about its user interface, functionality, and efficiency. Despite this, The Trade Desk has begun restricting agencies from launching new campaigns without using its Kokai platform.

The platform incorporates three measurement indices: the Retail Sales Index, the TV Quality Index, and the Quality Reach Index. Kokai also features retail measurement data from partner retailers including Albertsons Media Collective and Walgreens Advertising Group when audience data is enabled.

Connected TV and retail media networks represent particularly promising segments within the digital advertising market, which has an estimated total addressable market of approximately $1 trillion and a 14.5% compound annual growth rate. In line with this, The Trade Desk has introduced measurement innovations designed for connected TV and retail media channels within Kokai.

The company's growth strategy extends beyond Kokai. The Trade Desk has announced "Ventura," a new streaming TV operating system, in November 2024. Despite these advancements, The Trade Desk faces ongoing challenges including competition from technology giants like Alphabet and Meta, privacy regulation changes, and the decline of third-party cookies.

The transition to Kokai has had an impact on The Trade Desk's stock price, with a 55% decline since November 2024, reflecting investor concerns about the platform transition. Bill Simmons, former VP of Product at The Trade Desk, announced his departure on March 14, 2025, just days after industry critics shared skepticism about the Kokai platform on social media.

However, it's worth noting that there are no publicly available detailed reports or credible sources that list specific agencies or advertising agencies actively collaborating with The Trade Desk who have refused to use the Kokai platform due to challenges posed by it. Some agencies are actively moving away from The Trade Desk due to Kokai implementation challenges, but The Partner Portal in Kokai allows thousands of partners to connect directly with The Trade Desk using standardized adapters.

In conclusion, The Trade Desk's Q2 2025 results demonstrate the company's ability to adapt and grow in the ever-evolving digital advertising landscape. Despite the challenges posed by the transition to Kokai, The Trade Desk remains committed to innovation and delivering value to its clients.

Forced Implementation of Kokai on TTD Platform Meeting with Resistance from Users