Hats Off to Web Advertising. No, Really.

[Commentary] What if ads, in a fairly direct way, are responsible for much of what is magical, automated and “smart” about our gadgets and the Internet today?

Many of those behind the curtain building the things we rely on cut their teeth in the ad tech world. Since the debut of the Web banner ad in 1994, ad tech has been a finishing school for some of the greatest minds in tech history. Just as the nuclear bomb became nuclear power, ad tech is continually having a swords-to-plowshares moment. The resources companies like Facebook, Google and others are able to pour into creative uses for what is in the end simply applied mathematics pays dividends for the entire tech ecosystem, and ultimately everyone who uses it.