Hakuhodo DY ONE Officially Launches Verification Test as a Google Buyer Direct Partner
〜Accelerating social implementation of agentic advertising with AI agents 〜

Tokyo, March 24, 2026 – Hakuhodo DY ONE Inc. is pleased to announce that it has officially launched a verification test for the alpha version of Buyer Direct, a new advertising transaction model offered globally by Google.

Although Hakuhodo DY ONE has been leading technical verification for this infrastructure, we are now moving into the full-scale verification phase to build on the insights gained thus far for verifying its effectiveness in the Japanese market, with a view to constructing a new advertising transaction model that straddles the traditional boundaries of direct media buying (traditional advertising) and programmatic buying.

Background and aim

The present digital advertising market faces structural issues such as rising opaque intermediate costs and the divergence of data and infrastructure due to the fragmentation of supply chains into different transaction types including direct media buying, programmatic and performance-based. To address these issues, Hakuhodo DY ONE has been testing Google’s Buyer Direct for verification purposes.

This verification test is crucial for identifying how the increased transparency and autonomy due to the curtailment of the advertising transaction process will help change actual business practices. Hakuhodo DY ONE is committed to fully implementing this product in Japan, with the objective of elevating the traditional practices and concepts of people-led, complex adjustment and execution of advertising transactions into autonomous decision-making by AI agents.

 Features of Buyer Direct

Google’s Buyer Direct is a new model of advertising transactions without the traditional intervention of DSPs or SSPs, directly linking advertisers and advertising companies with media companies. It effectively enables the combining of data and frequency functions while maintaining a position equivalent to that of traditional advertising. Its typical merits in comparison with DSP and SSP transactions include improved data matching and reduced intermediate costs.

The present phase seeks to verify the process of instant AI-powered matching of prime slots in premium media with optimal users, leveraging data from Hakuhodo DY ONE’s AudienceOne®, one of the largest DMPs in Japan. This is an attempt to capture the possibility of a completely new type of transaction where AI integrates the certainty of traditional advertising with the flexibility of programmatic advertising at the highest level.

• AI-powered precision targeting:
  We realize precise targeting with AI, leveraging quality data from AudienceOne®.
• Optimized frequency control:
  We optimize frequency across premium media to provide many users with a quality advertising experience.
• Supply chain connection by the shortest path:
  We simplify the process, reduce intermediate costs, and deliver more transparent advertising operation with direct transactions.

 Next steps

In parallel with the present verification test, Hakuhodo DY ONE is promoting the adoption of AI agents (AI-powered support tools) in Japan, including Buyer Direct. In view of the needs of advertisers and media companies, this initiative aims to establish a new advertising business process, whereby AI supports or performs autonomous decision-making on the buying and management of advertising slots.

Through this initiative, Hakuhodo DY ONE is determined to help the sound development of the digital advertising industry, exploring in a manner suited to the Japanese market a transaction model for the new age, enabling advertisers and media companies to build mutual trust through the most direct way.