RampUp Requiem: Rio Longacre & Krish Raja on Identity, Data Collaboration, and the Future of AdTech

Every year, leaders from across advertising, technology, and media gather in San Francisco for RampUp, the annual conference hosted by LiveRamp. Over the past decade, RampUp has become one of the most influential events in the AdTech ecosystem—bringing together brands, agencies, publishers, data providers, and technology platforms to discuss the future of identity, data collaboration, and responsible advertising.

LiveRamp sits at the center of that conversation. The company built its reputation as a pioneer in identity resolution—helping marketers connect fragmented consumer signals across devices, platforms, and channels in a privacy-conscious way. Today, LiveRamp’s technology powers a broad data collaboration ecosystem that allows organizations to safely match, analyze, and activate data across partners, platforms, and clean room environments. As the advertising industry moves deeper into a world defined by privacy regulation, signal loss, and AI-driven decisioning, LiveRamp’s role as a neutral identity and data collaboration layer has only grown more important.

In this special Signal & Noise episode, Rio Longacre and Krish Raja kick things off with a recap of RampUp 2026, sharing their perspective on the biggest themes from the event—from the evolution of identity infrastructure to the rise of retail media networks, the increasing importance of data collaboration, and the growing influence of AI across the marketing ecosystem.

The episode then features a series of conversations with some of the industry’s leading voices who attended RampUp:

• Shailley Singh, COO & EVP of Product at IAB Tech Lab, discussing the future of industry standards, interoperability, and the technical infrastructure shaping digital advertising.

• Leigh M. Freund, CEO of Network Advertising Initiative (NAI), on privacy, regulation, and the evolving role of self-governance in digital advertising.

• Austin Leonard, VP/GM of Dollar General Media Network, exploring the continued rise of retail media and how new entrants are building powerful commerce-driven advertising platforms.

• Daniel Block, Head of Corporate Business Development at Fetch Rewards, on the growing role of consumer data platforms and loyalty ecosystems in modern marketing.

• Scott Messer, Founder & CEO of Messer Media, offering an independent operator’s perspective on the current state—and future direction—of AdTech.

Together, these conversations paint a picture of an industry that is rapidly evolving. Identity is being rebuilt. Data collaboration is becoming a core operating model. Retail media continues its explosive growth. And AI is beginning to reshape how campaigns are planned, executed, and optimized.

In other words, RampUp 2026 offered a glimpse into the next phase of digital advertising—and in this episode, we separate the signal from the noise.