DirecTV to Introduce AI-Generated Personalized Ads in TV Screensavers

DirecTV Customers Will Soon See Their Own Faces in AI-Generated TV Ads

DirecTV has partnered with Glance, an artificial intelligence company, to allow people using its Gemini streaming devices to see AI-generated screensavers featuring their own faces. Glance, owned by a mobile ad company, said it will add this new AI feature to DirecTV Gemini devices in 2026. If you own a Gemini device -- either the Gemini, which works via satellite, or the Gemini Air dongle if you're a broadband customer -- the TV screensaver will allow you to create an AI avatar of yourself. You can dress your AI avatar, and the screensaver will offer shopping links to those clothes. In a press release, DirecTV added that viewers will be able to "engage in interactive screensaver experiences across lifestyle, travel, health, auto, seasonal events and local trends, directly on the TV screens." One example the company shows is an image of the Grand Canyon, where you can click a button saying Show Me Here to see your AI self in the scene. Don't miss any of our unbiased tech content and lab-based reviews. Add CNET as a preferred Google source. "DirecTV audiences who stream TV through our Gemini devices will now get the opportunity to reimagine their interactions with their TV screen, with personalized content, entertainment, news and shopping recommendations in real time," DirecTV SVP of product marketing Vikash Sharma said in a press release. Glance previously teamed up with Samsung and also introduced AI-generated ads of members on the Samsung Galaxy phone's lock screen. These AI images similarly have a shoppable component. For Gemini devices, the AI-generated images will appear on screensavers only when the TV is idle for 10 minutes or longer. According to a Glance blog post earlier in the year, the company says that by generating AI avatars, the online shopping experience is more personalized. While this may be helpful to some, it could be a nuisance to others who aren't looking for more TV ads or are worried about their data security. This is after inMobi, the company that owns Glance, was sued for tracking unsuspecting users even after they denied the company permission.

DirecTV will soon bring AI ads to your screensaver

DirecTV wants to use AI to put you, your family, and your pets inside a custom TV screensaver. If that's not uncanny enough, you'll find items you can shop for within that AI environment, whether it's a piece of clothing similar to the one your AI likeness is wearing or a piece of furniture that pops up alongside it. The satellite TV giant is partnering with the AI company Glance to roll out this experience to DirecTV Gemini devices starting next year. "We are making television a lean-in experience versus lean back," Rajat Wanchoo, the group vice president of commercial partnerships at Glance, tells The Verge. "We want to give users a chance to use the advancements that have happened in generative AI to create a ChatGPT moment for themselves, but on TV." Glance is owned by InMobi, the same company that injected ecommerce bloatware into Motorola's budget phones. It also powers the new Samsung Galaxy feature that puts shoppable, AI-generated images of yourself in different outfits on your phone's lockscreen. DirecTV devices currently show Google wallpapers when left idle. But soon, if you leave your TV inactive for 10 minutes, Glance's AI experience will take its place. It will show a carousel of images that you can insert yourself into by scanning the QR code onscreen. It will prompt you to download the Glance mobile app to upload an image of yourself or someone else. You can also use the "craft my moment" feature to put yourself into a 30-second AI-generated video. You can further customize the image or video by talking into your remote, such as asking it to change the color or style of clothing it puts you in. Wanchoo tells The Verge that Glance doesn't create screensavers surrounding a specific product, but instead performs a reverse image search looking for items that are similar to the ones generated by AI. "No brand is pushing a product to you," Wanchoo says, adding that Glance has 1 trillion SKUs it can match AI-generated images with. If you decide to purchase a product, you'd have to complete the transaction on your phone. The feature is yet another way advertisers are trying to get creative with AI to make people buy products. Amazon has already rolled out tools that will fill its site with AI ads, and TikTok is allowing brands to create ads with AI influencers, like this one we saw from Vodafone. Glance has plans to cram AI ads into even more areas of your TV, too. "This, we can integrate across different places within the television," Glance COO Mansi Jain says. "We are starting with the screensaver, but tomorrow ... we can integrate it in the launcher of the TV."

Who Needs Models? DirecTV AI Puts You Into Its Ads on Your TV Screen

Jibin is a tech news writer based in Ahmedabad, India, who loves breaking down complex information for a broader audience. Don't miss out on our latest stories. Add PCMag as a preferred source on Google. Do you have dreams of TV stardom? It's probably not going to happen, but DirecTV has the next best thing: an AI avatar of yourself that lives inside the TV and helps you shop. DirecTV is teaming up with Glance AI to bring AI-generated ads to your TV screen, starring you. As The Verge reports, the experience lets you create an AI screensaver of yourself, which you can then maneuver to shop within the TV experience. A demo video shows someone with the Glance AI app aiming their phone at a QR code. They take a selfie with the phone, which is uploaded to the TV and puts their face on a model wearing clothes you can buy. You'll need one of DirecTV's Gemini devices; the Gemini requires a satellite dish, while the Gemini Air is a dongle that plugs into your TV and connects via Wi-Fi. DirecTV currently shows Google wallpapers as screensavers when left idle. Starting early next year, the new partnership will display Glance's AI-powered content and ads once the device is idle for 10 minutes, The Verge says. Glance AI is powered by on-device AI developed in collaboration with Google. The interactive screensavers will also display real-time weather and sports alerts. At CES this year, LG and Samsung announced plans to bring Microsoft's Copilot to their TVs, and in August, Samsung announced a new integration of Copilot with Samsung's 2025 lineup of AI-powered TVs and smart monitors.

DirecTV will start replacing screensavers with AI-generated ads next year

DirecTV will begin replacing your TV's screensaver with AI-generated ads thanks to a new partnership. The entertainment brand is working with Glance, an AI company that has received backing from Google and developed an on-device AI tool alongside the tech giant. The new AI-powered screensavers will begin rolling out to DirecTV Gemini devices early next year. Glance's press release about the deal presents the tech's capability in lofty language: "Shop smarter by discovering and engaging with products and brands in an AI-led virtual and visually immersive shopping experience that feels native to TV." In practice, however, it sounds like a viewer can use the Glance mobile app to do things like insert themselves or other people into AI-generated videos appearing on their televisions. Then they can use the voice remote to alter the person's wardrobe and then buy items similar to the AI-generated images from your phone. "We are making television a lean-in experience versus lean back," Rajat Wanchoo, Glance's group vice president of commercial partnerships, told The Verge, which initially picked up news of the partnership. "We want to give users a chance to use the advancements that have happened in generative AI to create a ChatGPT moment for themselves, but on TV." It's unclear how many DirecTV customers want to have a ChatGPT moment for themselves, but questions about whether people want or need a feature hasn't stopped most AI companies from pushing ahead with business plans. The press release doesn't note whether viewers will be able to turn off this screensaver feature once it's live.

AI-generated screensaver ads coming to DirecTV's Gemini devices in 2026

Serving tech enthusiasts for over 25 years. TechSpot means tech analysis and advice you can trust. Bottom line: While the new screensaver model is optional and can be disabled, it highlights how legacy pay-TV providers are relying on advertising to drive fresh revenue. With the integration of Glance's AI platform, DirecTV joins a wider industry move to merge media consumption with data-driven commerce on connected screens. DirecTV is preparing to bring a new form of advertising directly to television screens. Starting in early 2026, the company's Gemini and Gemini Air streaming devices will begin displaying AI-generated screensavers powered by Glance, a consumer technology company best known for embedding smart advertising feeds onto smartphones and, increasingly, connected TVs. The Gemini Air - an Android TV-based USB dongle developed by Humax - lets subscribers stream DirecTV's programming lineup and access apps such as Netflix, Max, and Prime Video without a satellite connection. It runs Android TV 11 and includes 4GB of memory, a Broadcom BCM72181 quad-core processor, and support for 4K HDR video through HDMI 2.1. The compact device also integrates Chromecast, Google Assistant, and Dolby Vision support, operating on Wi-Fi 5 for wireless connectivity. Under the new partnership, idle screens on Gemini devices will serve as digital displays for interactive AI experiences. When a DirecTV-connected television remains inactive for about ten minutes, the screensaver will shift from static Google wallpapers to dynamic Glance AI content. Viewers will be able to scan a QR code on screen to create an AI-generated avatar of themselves. Once uploaded via Glance's mobile app, users can personalize that avatar and explore product recommendations based on the on-screen imagery. Each AI scene is designed to feature shoppable content, such as clothing or furniture similar to what appears in the generated visuals. Rajat Wanchoo, Glance's group VP of commercial partnerships, told The Verge that Glance's algorithms can match these visuals with over one trillion product listings (SKUs) from affiliated retailers. Purchases, however, are finalized through a separate mobile device. Alongside the shoppable ads, Glance said the idle screens will also display real-time information such as weather conditions and sports scores. The AI interface is powered by a collaboration with Google and runs directly on-device, allowing content to update without additional hardware. In addition to individual avatars, users will be able to generate 30-second AI-generated clips or participate in interactive moments that integrate branded elements. Glance has described this as an evolution of its lock-screen advertising model - one it previously deployed on Samsung Galaxy phones - into the television ecosystem. For DirecTV, the rollout underscores a shift toward advertising as a pillar of its business. The company has lost millions of subscribers over the past decade, falling from more than 20 million in 2015 to an estimated 11 million by late 2024.

What's worse than ads on your TV? Ads on your TV featuring you

DirecTV recently revealed its plans to use AI to display screensaver ads. Not stopping there, the provider is also planning to create AI-generated avatars of you, your family, and even your pets. In a fashion similar to Google's virtual try-on Shopping feature, DirecTV's AI will dress you in fancy clothing or surround you with products to woo you into buying them. The streaming giant says the features are coming to its Gemini (not to be confused with Google's Gemini AI) range of devices in 2026. The so-called "AI-powered content and commerce screensavers" are powered by Glance, the same platform that powers lock screen ads on nearly every major Android phone brand, while labelling them as "wallpaper services." Glance's screensaver ads already exist on other Android-based streaming devices, including ones offered by Airtel in India, where it is already using AI to generate part of those screensaver ads.

AI-generated ads will soon grace your TV screensavers

From idle to interactive: your TV's finally got something to say! What's happened? Earlier this year at CES, Glance announced that it will bring AI-driven TV screensavers. Now, it is living upto its promise by teaming up with DirecTV to make idle TV screens smarter and more fun. Starting in early 2026, users streaming via DirecTV Gemini devices will see their screensavers evolve from static wallpapers into immersive, AI-powered experiences. Instead of staying idle, your screen could display personalized visuals, from trending videos and news bites to travel ideas and shoppable content The experience is powered by AI built into the device, meaning it can learn what you like without sending your data all over the internet You can even interact with what's on screen to explore content, browse products, or just enjoy visuals that actually match your interests Why is this important? This partnership signals that TV is evolving from passive viewing into an interactive gateway that will blend entertainment, shopping, and personalization into one seamless experience. For DirecTV, it's a smart way to stay relevant as streaming takes over and people spend less time on traditional TV channels For Glance, it's a chance to expand its lock-screen magic to a bigger screen And for viewers? It's a glimpse of how AI could make TV a two-way experience and not just something you stare at Since the system uses on-device AI, it offers faster responses and better privacy Why should I care? Because your TV might soon start knowing what you like, and it could actually be useful. If this experiment succeeds, we can expect similar innovations across TVs, streaming boxes, and smart home devices. You could discover cool videos, local updates, or even shop for things without reaching for your phone The line between watching and interacting is blurring, making the living room a more dynamic space And let's be honest, if you're going to stare at a screen anyway, it might as well do more than display a mountain photo