Published on: November 4, 2026
The Trade Desk has brought back co-founder and former Chief Technology Officer Dave Pickles, three years after he stepped away from his executive role and the company’s board in 2023. Pickles will establish and lead a newly formed CTO Council, which will work alongside the company’s engineering and product teams to guide its technology strategy and product development. He has continued to serve as an advisor since his departure.
According to the company, the council will focus on areas including technology architecture, operational efficiency and key engineering investments, with particular attention to agentic capabilities and AI-powered advertising workflows.
Commenting on Pickles’ return, Jeff Green, CEO of The Trade Desk, said: “I’m so excited Dave is back. I’ve missed working with him,” CEO Jeff Green said in a statement. “We’ve had so many successes together over the years, and I’m energized to take all of that history and point it toward the future. This is a pivotal crossroads for our company and the industry.”
The leadership announcement comes ahead of The Trade Desk’s expected third-quarter earnings report on November 9. The company, which went public in 2016, has faced challenges in recent quarters, including slower revenue growth, product-related concerns among advertising partners and a significant decline in its stock price.
In August, The Trade Desk reported second-quarter revenue of $715 million, representing 3% year-over-year growth but falling approximately $37.6 million short of analyst expectations. The company also projected third-quarter revenue of at least $650 million, around 12% lower than the corresponding period a year earlier.
Pickles highlighted the progress made by the company’s existing teams and expressed his intention to support their work. Dave Pickles, Co-founder of The Trade Desk, said: “I’m thrilled by all the progress our engineering and product teams have made in recent years,” Pickles said in a statement. “The foundation here is strong, and I’m excited to support the team and help guide them through a new era of rapid change and opportunity.”
Green and Pickles co-founded The Trade Desk in 2009. Before establishing the company, Pickles worked at AdECN, an advertising exchange acquired by Microsoft, where he led the team responsible for developing its real-time bidding exchange.
When Pickles stepped down in 2023, Sairaj Uddin, then Senior Vice President of Engineering, and Gruia Pitigoi-Aron, then Senior Vice President of Product, assumed day-to-day technology leadership, reporting directly to Green.
The company’s technology platform has remained a key area of focus since Pickles’ departure. The Trade Desk introduced its Kokai platform in 2023, but faced advertiser concerns over the product. Some marketers reportedly shifted millions of dollars in advertising expenditure from the platform to Amazon, and the company subsequently discontinued Kokai.
The Trade Desk has also experienced changes in its finance leadership, including multiple CFO departures. More recently, it expanded its AI capabilities through Koa, a conversational AI interface designed to support advertising workflows.
The company has not clarified whether Pickles will return on a full-time basis, rejoin its board or take on a formal officer position. Details regarding how the new CTO Council will work alongside the existing engineering and product leadership teams have also not been disclosed.
Read more: Porter strengthens its leadership team for its next phase of growth
