Published on
March 4, 2025
As the digital advertising world fixates on the end of third-party cookies, a more pressing issue is quietly growing - the carbon footprint of programmatic advertising. Behind every automated bid, impression, and ad placement lies an energy-intensive infrastructure contributing significantly to global emissions. While the industry prides itself on precision and performance, it has largely overlooked its environmental impact. This blog calls for a shift in mindset: from optimizing purely for clicks to also accounting for carbon. It's a wake-up call for advertisers, platforms, and agencies to recognize the environmental cost of digital media and to start building a more sustainable future for advertising.
The advertising industry is in a frenzy over the impending demise of third-party cookies.
Brands and agencies are scrambling to adapt their targeting strategies, data collection methods, and ad measurement techniques to a cookieless world.
But while the industry focuses on what’s next for digital tracking, there’s a much bigger issue that isn’t getting nearly enough attention - the staggering digital footprint of programmatic advertising.
It’s easy to dismiss programmatic marketing as a low-emission industry compared to sectors like manufacturing or transportation.
After all, what’s so harmful about serving an ad on a webpage? But the truth is that the complex, automated processes behind programmatic advertising platforms generate significant carbon emissions.
And as digital advertising spend continues to grow, the industry is on track to become one of the biggest hidden contributors to climate change.
Programmatic advertising has transformed the way ads are bought and sold, allowing for real-time bidding (RTB) and hyper-targeted placements. But this automation comes at an environmental cost.
According to a report, programmatic advertising generates over 215,000 metric tons of carbon emissions each month across five major global economies.
Breaking this down further:
The environmental impact of programmatic marketing is often underestimated. Even within the advertising sector, traditional Out-of-Home (OOH) advertising is significantly more carbon-efficient than programmatic advertising. Research shows that OOH is up to 336% more carbon-efficient than programmatic video ads served on connected TVs (CTV)
Programmatic advertising is built for efficiency, but behind the scenes, it’s an emissions-heavy system.
Every automated bid, impression, and data exchange contributes to a growing carbon crisis. A single programmatic ad campaign can generate emissions equal to the annual carbon footprint of seven people.
Despite the industry’s focus on performance, carbon accountability is missing. Advertisers optimize for clicks, not emissions.
That’s where Climaty AI steps in.
Most programmatic advertising platforms don’t track emissions. Climaty AI makes them visible.
Programmatic advertising is inefficient.
Even optimized ads generate some emissions. Climaty AI neutralizes them.
While the industry debates alternative tracking solutions, it’s critical that we also address the elephant in the room - the sheer energy consumption and carbon emissions of programmatic marketing.
The future of advertising isn’t just cookieless - it’s carbon-conscious.
With Climaty AI, marketers can achieve smarter, cleaner, and more sustainable advertising at scale.
The choice is clear: adapt now, or risk being left behind in an industry that’s rapidly evolving toward a greener future.
