The Trade Desk appears to be publicly hiring for its Ventura team for the first time.
In late November, the company formally announced plans to launch a new streaming TV OS called Ventura “as early as 2025.” The OS will involve partnerships with smart TV manufacturers and content providers for deployment. Now, as of a few days ago, it seems TTD is actively seeking Ventura-specific talent, with 15 new job postings on LinkedIn. (The actual number may be smaller, as similar listings appear to have been posted multiple times to target different regions.)
The new roles include Senior Staff Software Engineers, including Android Platform Software Engineers, aligning with Janko Roettgers’ August report that Ventura is said to be a type of Android AOSP (Android Open Source Project), similar to Amazon’s Fire TV OS.
Additionally, TTD is hiring a Ventura Principal Product Manager who “will help us shape our vision and form strategies to innovate and bring a new product to market.” Emphasizing the role’s significance, the listing says: “This role will lead a substantial part of the product strategy and vision for our CTV platform, crafting roadmaps that bring this vision to life. The ideal candidate will own the product, user experience, design, and technology needed to create state-of-the-art Connected TV consumer experiences.”
Why This Matters:
TTD is promoting Ventura’s benefits on multiple fronts. For consumers, the company claims the platform will offer a “more intuitive, engaging user experience,” including features like cross-platform content discovery, personalization, and subscription management. TTD is also hinting at fewer—but more relevant—ads.
For advertisers and publishers, TTD is emphasizing a cleaner, more transparent supply chain for streaming. The platform, according to TTD, will minimize supply chain hops and costs, which will boost ad spend efficiency and make sure more dollars go directly to publishers.
Will this come to fruition? TBD. Check out Ad Tech Explained’s recent piece on Ventura which explores some of the moves that need to be made to deliver on Ventura’s TV OS promise.
Experts React:
TTD is actively hiring to build and support its TV OS. Does this mean they won’t buy Roku? What, you say? Well, that’s currently a hot rumor, with some analysts suggesting TTD should acquire the partner-turned-TV OS competitor.
Last week, Guggenheim analyst Michael Morris commented, “We believe TTD could rapidly scale its OS ambitions via Roku’s 85 million+ global streaming household footprint, while Roku could quickly leverage its first-party viewer data and expanding CTV inventory to match with growing advertiser demand.”
But is this realistic? See these two tweets throwing cold water on the idea:
Our Take:
Just how far along is Ventura? The press release announcing it says TTD “has developed Ventura,” but there was no actual OS launch or OEM partner announcement. The new job listings suggest there’s still substantial work to shape what Ventura will ultimately look like, indicating it’s still, understandably, in the early stages.
The timeline for a launch “as early as 2025” is fairly broad, giving TTD wiggle room. Much of the progress may depend on the OEM partner they choose to debut with—and their smart TV ambitions. Rumors still point to Sonos as a potential partner. It will be interesting to see how quickly this comes together.
