Affiliate World Budapest 2025: AI, Short-Form, and the Next Phase of Performance

Last week, Affiliate World Europe took over Budapest. Two dense days at MTK Sportpark brought together a global mix of affiliates, advertisers, networks, traffic sources, payments providers, and tools - 7,000+ people and 300+ exhibitors focused on what’s working now in performance. 

From the Main Stage tracks (AI-powered marketing, Meta, TikTok, Google, and “Hot Topics”) to packed workshops and side events, the energy was transactional and tactical.

AI and Automation Step Into the Spotlight

One of the headline content tracks in Budapest was AI for Marketing & Automation. The topic was one of the most referenced themes across post-event recaps.The Outbrain workshop, “From Prompt to Profit: Your AI Co-Pilot for Performance Media Buying,” drew a full room and set the tone for how quickly AI is being adopted into daily workflows. As ReachEffect summarized, “AI automation isn’t the future of affiliate marketing. It’s the present reality that many are adapting to”.

Sessions and conversations highlighted the same undercurrent: automation has shifted from being an experiment to becoming the foundation of how campaigns are run. Adcash’s recap echoed this, noting that for many attendees “AI isn’t the future, it’s the baseline”. Whether in creative testing, traffic optimization, or adapting to the privacy updates from Meta and Google, automation was framed as essential to staying competitive.

This pragmatic tone marks a shift from past years, where AI was still treated as hype. In Budapest, the consensus was that the conversation has moved on. The real questions now are about integration: which tools save the most time, which workflows can be automated without losing control, and how fast teams can adopt without disrupting existing processes.

‍Short-Form Creative and Social Growth

If AI gave the event its framework, creative gave it its heartbeat. TikTok and Meta Ads were among the busiest tracks, showing just how central these platforms remain to affiliate and e-commerce growth. TikTok Ads workshops walked through creator-led campaign strategies and scaling UGC content, while Meta Ads sessions focused on adapting to new privacy and targeting changes.

Short-form content was one of the recurring takeaways from Budapest. Attendees heard about the need for faster iterations, creator-led campaigns, and UGC-style ads that feel authentic in a crowded feed. TikTok’s dominance was impossible to ignore, while Meta’s evolving ad system remained a critical piece of the conversation, especially with targeting shifts and privacy rules continuing to shape how advertisers operate.

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Networking, Deals, and the Budapest Backdrop

Affiliate World has always been known for its networking, and Budapest carried that reputation forward. With 400+ exhibitors showcasing tools, platforms, and agencies, the expo floor was the natural hub for dealmaking and discovery.

From our conversations on-site, a few clear trends stood out: in-app agencies are actively expanding into web channels, VPN offers are presenting strong demand-side opportunities, device-subscription models are emerging as a fresh monetization play, and Southeast Asia and LATAM are heating up as growth regions on both demand and supply sides.

The highlight beyond the floor was the official AWE party at Vajdahunyad Castle, which delivered the signature Affiliate World mix of atmosphere and opportunity. Against the backdrop of one of Budapest’s most striking landmarks, casual conversations often shifted into concrete plans, proving once again that many of the industry’s most important deals are finalized after hours.

‍AWE Budapest as a Checkpoint

Affiliate World Europe Budapest 2025 felt like a checkpoint for an industry under pressure but moving forward. It was a place “where top-level strategies meet real-world use”, and that’s exactly how the event landed.

The key themes - AI, automation, short-form growth, and platform shifts - are defining the present moment, not just shaping the future. Attendees came ready to plan, budget, and test new strategies.

With Affiliate World Asia set for Bangkok in December 2025, the industry’s attention is already shifting east. If you’re planning to attend, let’s connect on-site. We’d love to continue the conversations from Budapest, explore new opportunities, and share more about how we’re helping partners adapt to the next chapter of growth.

With AI no longer treated as hype, TikTok and Meta shaping the creative playbook, and Google Ads still central to scaling strategies, the event proved that affiliates, advertisers, and networks are adapting in real time.

For us, the message couldn’t be clearer. Control and scale now go hand in hand, and growth depends on building systems that can move as fast as the platforms themselves. That means embracing automation, keeping creative supply fresh, and treating measurement as the foundation of every campaign.