Adtech is broken. This new system could actually fix it.

The advertising industry has a problem. Consumers want privacy. Brands want verified performance. And all the data flows through third parties and black box systems where nobody can see what’s actually happening. 

And with more laws regulating adtech, such as Europe’s Digital Services Act, tightening the screws, the industry can no longer rely on systems that operate in the dark. The only way forward is by demanding systems that run on verifiable, trustless data.

The hidden auction eating your ad budget 

Every time you see an ad online, there’s an entire auction happening behind the scenes. Middlemen jump in to bid, trade, and share info, with each one taking a cut. 

Nearly one-third of US advertising spend on programmatic display ads goes to intermediaries, so by the time the ad appears, advertisers have lost money on platform fees, transaction costs and more.

This creates an ideal environment for waste and fraud. And traditional adtech platforms have no reason to address the rampant fraud that has plagued the industry for more than 15 years. When success is measured in impressions, who cares if a few thousand - or hundred thousand - are fake?

Running a trustworthy public audit is equally impossible. With information scattered across so many different sources, it would be like trying to piece together a puzzle with no idea what the final product is supposed to look like. 

That’s where Alkimi’s approach stands out: it brings the same process onchain, where everything is transparent, verifiable, and efficient.

What actually transparent adtech looks like

Alkimi is a decentralized ad platform that uses Walrus as its data layer. Here’s how it works: Instead of relying on hidden systems, all campaign data is recorded on an open, tamper-proof ledger. As a result, advertisers and publishers can see what’s happening with their spend in real time, with no need to take anyone’s word for it or chase down data weeks later. 

This transparency is powered by Walrus, which securely stores ad transaction data onchain. Together with encryption provided by Seal, sensitive information stays confidential but every impression and dollar spent can still be audited. The result is a system that gives advertisers and publishers a clear, trustworthy view of what’s happening. 

The numbers speak for themselves: Alkimi is already processing over 25 million ad impressions per day and 3.5 billion+ transactions total using Walrus, demonstrating the scalability and demand for adtech solutions that are decentralized and transparent.

Going bigger than ads

The impact goes beyond just ad campaigns. Alkimi is pioneering AdFi - a new financial framework that treats verified advertising data as a programmable asset within a token lending and liquidity facility.

AdFi operates as a lending arrangement built around verified onchain advertising data. This enables publishers to access early liquidity against confirmed ad revenue, while advertisers and the wider ecosystem benefit from faster and more transparent fund movement.

In this structure, verified impressions serve as the basis for collateral, and future campaign settlements can be tokenised into programmable payment flows. AdFi is a utility-driven liquidity mechanism that facilitates fair, timely payment across the digital advertising supply chain. 

This shift mirrors what Walrus enables in other industries: a world where data can finally be trusted, shared, and monetized responsibly. Just as Walrus allows health data or research datasets to be traded securely, it enables advertising data to fuel a more transparent, fair, and intelligent economy.

As regulation tightens and brands demand proof over promises, this kind of verifiable infrastructure will become the new standard. Transparency won’t be a feature, it’ll be the foundation. 

With systems like Alkimi powered by Walrus, adtech has a chance to rebuild trust from the ground up and finally deliver the accountability it’s always promised.

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