Reddit unveils interactive ad units offering creative flexibility for advertiser

New Delhi: Reddit has launched a new ad format, Interactive Ads, which allows brands to create custom, participatory ad experiences designed for the platform’s community-led environment. The feature is currently in limited alpha testing for select advertisers.

According to Reddit, the new ad units enable advertisers to design interactive content for its 100,000-plus communities, allowing users to “play, participate, and explore directly within the ad itself.” 

The formats range from fully bespoke campaigns and creative activations to lighter templates such as countdowns, quizzes, dynamic reveals, and trivia, offering varying levels of creative and financial flexibility.

The ads are powered by Reddit’s Developer Platform and are intended to support “creative-first campaigns designed for how redditors connect.”

Early adopters of Interactive Ads include Paramount Pictures, Electronic Arts (EA), the Ad Council, and Red Bull. Paramount Pictures used the format to promote its 14 November release The Running Man, starring Glen Powell, through a movie-themed escape game featuring custom content capture and an exclusive teaser accessible upon completion. 

EA used the format to launch a new Battlefield game with a custom challenge tracking community progress towards a shared mission, along with a countdown template to build anticipation before release.

“Interactive Ads are a Reddit-unique format that offer ad innovation at scale, making it simple for brands to create immersive moments that drive discovery and participation right where conversations are happening,” said Jyoti Vaidee, Vice President of Ads Product at Reddit. 

“The result is brand interactions that earn attention and create lasting impact in a space the audience trusts.”

Reddit stated that the format encourages participation through “taps, swipes, choices, and moments of discovery” that can deepen audience connection and brand recall. The company added that the new units go “beyond static image or video ads” to foster engagement within users’ existing feed activity.

Interactive Ads are currently available in limited testing, with broader rollout details yet to be announced.