In 2026, affiliate is rewriting its story — and witnessing substantial growth. But while the channel becomes a tech-driven powerhouse and earns its seat at the table, it's not an easy ride. From intense competition and rising costs to complex consumer journeys and zero-click challenges, the pressure is on.
And with more obstacles to overcome than ever before, time is still sucked up by repetitive, manual tasks, approval chasing, and data fragmentation. This is time that could be funnelled into the core levers of the channel: relationships, strategy and human judgement.
To plug the gap, today PI LIVE is hosting BuildLab, a competition to create the next-gen partnership tools to solve this challenge.
Tradedoubler, Awin, Impact.com, Optimise, Everflow, Adtraction, and Bravo Savings Network are working on this virtual build challenge; the day will conclude with seven working prototypes usable by brands, agencies, affiliates, and/or creators.
Participants — some of the best and brightest in the industry — will be heads down, armed with AI tools, models, and MCP integrations, to surface a solution that will give the industry back its time.
Ctrl Alt Elite
On the Tradedoubler team — dubbed Ctrl Alt Elite — there's Corin Ward, Director of AI; Colin Chadwick, Frontend Developer; Daniel Frisk, Senior System Engineer; Harry Collins, Technical Client Manager; Dimitri Papatheodorou, Senior Software Developer; and Arne Luerßen, Head of Platform Engineering and Architecture.
Speaking on their participation, the team said: “AI is already changing how we work at Tradedoubler and how our clients do business, and the pace is only accelerating. We’re taking part in BuildLab because we want to help shape what comes next for partner marketing.”
Adding: “It’s a chance to combine our AI experience with ideas from across the industry and build something practical that gives back to the community, freely available for everyone to use.”
Here for A-win
Next up is the Awin team, who are setting expectations early with the team name, Here for A-win.
Positioning its engineering and product team front and centre, on board is Sebastian Jonas, Engineering Manager; Pedro Santos, Senior Software Engineer; Pradeep Hunjanalu, Senior Software Engineer; Rafi Ullah, Software Engineer; Vlad Batalan, Software Engineer; Patrick Woessner, Product Manager; and Abhijith Shetty, Data Engineer.
PI Radius²
On the impact.com team, PI Radius² is made up of Smita Pillai, Regional Vice President, Customer Success, dubbed ‘The Fixer’; Alex Ratford, Senior Publisher Development Strategist, AKA The Promptmaster; Strategy Analyst Otto Kokars, ‘The Data Brain’; Pini Stimler, Solutions Consultant and ‘The Product Oracle’; and Jakub Kozlowski, Senior Customer Success Manager, ‘The Connector’.
"We're excited to bring a team of smart minds together for PI LIVE's BuildLab event. It's a different kind of challenge, one focused on solving pressing industry challenges at speed,” said the team. “We're looking forward to seeing what we can produce in a day and being part of something genuinely collaborative and competitive!"
Unbound
Also rocking up to show their chops is Optimise, with the Unbound team, starring Alejandro Rizzi, Lead Software Engineer; Luke King, Application Developer; Ryan Knights, Senior Application Developer; Tom Nikoloff, Application Developer; and Jordan Munnery, Product Owner.
“It’s a brilliant opportunity and challenge! We’ve been using AI to significantly evolve our offering, and we’re intrigued to see what we can deliver when we combine fresh ideas, AI, an expert team and a tight deadline!” the team said.
Adding: “Ideation is always fun, the creative execution is where it gets really exciting. We’re looking forward to the chance to learn, build and connect with people who are equally excited about what’s next.”
The Flow Fighters
Everflow has assembled its team, The Flow Fighters, channelling the spirit of the rock gods themselves.
Competing on the Everflow team is Arshi Bhasin, Director of Product Management; Dasha Shareyko, Product Education Manager; Ceno Pant, Director of Growth; Laurie Cutts, Head of Agency & Strategic Partnerships; and Alina Goodine, UX Research Lead.
The Adtraction Five
We’ve also got The Adtraction Five from Adtraction, featuring UK Country Manager Clare O'Reilly; Solution Architect Olga Tamm; Country Manager NO Øivind Brunsell; Head of Adtraction Labs Oleg Mikheles; and Head of R&D Daniel Ørsted.
Simon Gustafson, CEO of Adtraction, commented: “We think BuildLab is a great initiative and a refreshing concept! It’s great to see people from across the industry come together and build something that everyone can benefit from.”
“It’s also a great opportunity for our own people to work together across markets and do something a bit different. Our tech teams don’t often get the chance to take part in industry events like this, so we’re especially happy to bring them along and put their skills in the spotlight. We like trying new things and doing stuff together, so of course we want to be part of that!”
Innovation Lab
Meanwhile, Bravo Savings Network is priming itself for out-of-the-box thinking with its Innovation Lab team, bringing together Paolo Puccini, Business Intelligence Manager; Tommaso Ballerini, Data Scientist; and Jacopo Bonito, Jr. Data Scientist.
"We love challenges, especially when they involve developing useful tools that could help the Affiliate Industry. Our InnovationLab team is ready and excited to get in the game at BuildLab!"
The PI LIVE spotlight
Our BuildLab winner will be revealed in the bright lights of PI LIVE Europe’s AIP Summit at 1pm on 21 October, following review from an independent panel and a community vote.
Eager to get a sneak peek at what they’re working on? Follow along on social media for updates and grab your ticket to be in the room for the big reveal.
