ADSN a16z's Bryan Kim on why adtech is investable again, plus the energy space race, AI monetizing, and web 4.0
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Feb 24, 2026 
Bryan Kim, partner at Andreessen Horowitz who backs AI-native and consumer products. He explains why adtech is investable again thanks to AI economics. He covers new AI monetization plays, how agents reshape the ad funnel, and what Web 4.0 means for revenue and payments.
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Gen AI Enlarges Search Ad Opportunities
- Gen AI expands monetizable search by understanding complex queries and non-English intent, widening ad opportunities.
- Hosts reference Google's Gemini improving intent understanding and opening under-monetized search edges globally.
Rufus Demonstrates Direct Sales Lift From Chatbots
- Amazon's Rufus chatbot reached 300 million users and reportedly drove $12 billion incremental annualized sales in 2025.
- James and Daniel cite Rufus as an example of AI directly increasing retail revenue through conversational shopping.
Ads Are The Scalable Monetization For Mass AI
- Ads become the natural scalable monetization for mass AI products because inference costs create real marginal expenses per user.
- Bryan Kim argues large AI platforms need third-party money (ads) to serve broad audiences while keeping margins attractive.