Universal Ads announced Thursday an expansion of its Universal Audience Network in partnership with third-party publishers, including Samsung Ads, Cox Media, Philo, Vevo, and Telly. New partnerships enable marketers to scale campaigns with simplicity as Universal Audience Network maintains an over 90% household reach across premium video. Universal Ads is tackling one of streaming’s biggest pain points—fragmentation—by consolidating access to the streaming and connected TV (CTV) ecosystem.
New York has enacted the first US laws requiring disclosure and consent for AI-generated performers and posthumous likenesses in advertising and entertainment. The measures mandate clear labeling when synthetic or digitally altered performers appear onscreen and require approval from estates before deceased individuals’ likenesses are used commercially. The laws sharpen a state–federal divide: President Trump has warned states against AI rules that could hinder US competitiveness, favoring a single national framework instead. For media companies, New York’s move creates immediate compliance obligations—and a preview of regulatory uncertainty ahead.
Lululemon athletica’s CEO Calvin McDonald will relinquish his role on January 31, 2026 to an as-yet-unnamed successor. Whoever that person is will face the task of restoring the brand’s authority in a category it once dominated—particularly in North America, where sales have been stagnant or negative for seven straight quarters. Whoever takes the helm at lululemon should look to refocus the brand on its athleisure roots. The company needs to make sure that its core product lines are resonating with consumers before devoting significant resources into other categories like footwear, where it faces a tougher path to building credibility amid entrenched competition.
Marketing leaders are reallocating spending toward social, prioritizing user engagement, and reducing focus on traditional SEO tactics. The shift reflects marketers’ desire for speed, flexibility, and clear ROI signals. But it also shows the growing need to balance long-term brand building with short-term, engagement-driven wins. Brands should rebalance—not replace—channel mix by defining engagement benchmarks and KPIs that tie directly to brand lift, evaluating influencer impact beyond vanity metrics, and protecting core SEO efforts that support long-term discoverability.
Shopify has introduced 150 updates, headlined by two major tools aimed at expanding reach and boosting conversions: an “agentic storefront” that lets consumers buy products directly through AI platforms like ChatGPT and a new Shopify Product Network that helps merchants fill product gaps via cross-store recommendations. The agentic storefront should give merchants an early advantage in AI-powered commerce, while the Product Network should boost conversions, and create new revenue streams without adding inventory or operational burdens.
Over half (52%) of senior data and technology executives worldwide use generative AI to boost internal productivity, according to a June survey from MIT Technology Review Insights.
On today’s EMARKETER Miniseries—A Blueprint to Better Measurement—we explore the appeal of Amazon not just as a sales platform but also as an advertiser, how Amazon Ads defines omnichannel metrics, and a few examples of campaigns that have performed particularly well. EMARKETER Principal Analyst Sky Canaves speaks with Kolby Capelouto, Head of Sales for Durables at Amazon Ads. Listen everywhere you find podcasts, and watch on YouTube and Spotify.
Amazon's recent business moves, examining corporate layoffs, AI-powered shopping features, and new smart glasses technology for delivery workers paint an interesting view of its immediate future and what it could mean for consumers.
ChatGPT is closing 2025 as the most downloaded iPhone app in the US, vaulting past entrenched social platforms, search, and shopping apps, per TechCrunch. Google Gemini was the only other AI app in the top 10, landing in the final slot. This is the first time an AI assistant has outranked every social and utility app in the US. AI assistants are the new entry point for mobile discovery, and brands should optimize content, creative, and ad journeys for users who start—and often finish—inside conversational interfaces.
Retailers are investing in AI to improve operations and customer service. From design trend predictions to intelligent assistance, AI is moving from back-office functions to visible, customer-facing applications. Retailers that don’t explore AI risk losing out on positive outcomes, from efficiency gains and cost reductions to stronger personalization and customer loyalty. The winners will be those that use AI to solve real consumer pain points such as finding matching makeup shades or suggesting recipes based on nutrition goals.
TikTok grabbed the lead in Cyber Five advertising traffic this year, passing the 50% mark, per Industry KPI data from MikMak, showing it was the main discovery channel for early holiday shoppers. TikTok’s major swing past Meta this year shows that it is proving more effective at routing users from content into product pages and retail websites where purchases take place. Despite TikTok’s ad traffic advantage, Meta had an edge in facilitating purchases. Meta posted a 6.8% conversion rate over the Cyber Five, compared with TikTok’s 1.06%. These trends suggest advertisers would benefit from using two strategies during the rest of the holiday season: using TikTok to spur demand and lure shoppers, but looking to Meta to convert that interest into sales.
The heat on Temu parent PDD Holdings is growing, at home and abroad. The company is being investigated by China’s State Administration for Market Regulation (SAMR) over reports of fraudulent deliveries, per Bloomberg, while Temu’s Dublin headquarters were raided last week by the EU over concerns that the company breached foreign subsidy rules. PDD is losing goodwill in many of the markets it operates in—including in China, its most important. Employees reportedly got into fistfights with SAMR investigators at the company’s Shanghai offices, leading to multiple arrests. Such confrontations are highly unlikely to endear PDD to the powerful regulator, which has the ability to instigate sweeping probes into the company’s business practices.
Affirm expanded its partnership with Shopify, bringing Shop Pay installments to the UK, per a press release. PayPal and Klarna’s deep entrenchment in the UK will make it difficult for other BNPL contenders to make advances. Powering Shop Pay installments could help Affirm accelerate its foray into the country thanks to Shopify’s established network of merchants and brand recognition.
SoFi debuted the SoFi Smart Card, a charge card aimed at rewarding consumers in essential categories, per a press release. SoFi’s latest product meets the needs of everyday consumers while offering competitive cash back in a necessary category. Issuers should expand rewards on essential categories like groceries and gas to stop middle- and working-class cardholders from switching to neobank competitors—offering card products that assist with affordability.
Klarna sealed a research partnership with Stripe-owned Privy to develop a crypto wallet for Klarna users, per a press release. Klarna’s jump into crypto could help pad its margins and keep users more enmeshed in its growing ecosystem of financial services. But fintechs dabbling in stablecoins now still need to overcome the overwhelming inertia facing stablecoin payments. Consumers just aren’t interested in crypto payments, and unless they see immediate, concrete benefits for making the switch, KlarnaUSD and other proprietary stablecoins—like PayPalUSD—will have limited addressable markets.
Hims & Hers is officially bringing its subscription weight loss program to the UK. But rising prices of some GLP-1 medications in the UK may lower the incentive for consumers to sign up for a membership with a telehealth company offering prescriptions.
Millennials accounted for nearly half (46%) of all patient bookings on Zocdoc’s platform this year, per Zocdoc’s just-released annual report on consumer booking behaviors. Healthcare providers need to ensure that their online business profiles are updated, lean into digital tools for pre- and post-visit communication, and create social media content that offers information and guidance on caring for loved ones.
Eli Lilly’s next generation weight loss drug delivered significant weight reductions in new study data, outperforming its currently approved Zepbound. Lilly’s results signal a new phase for obesity drugs where weight loss can reach up to 30%, but side effects and clinical risks also rose alongside the results.
WunderKIND Ads announced an integration with Yahoo DSP Thursday that will unlock scalable access to Wunderkind’s connected TV (CTV) pause ad inventory through private marketplace (PMP) deals. Wunderkind’s and Yahoo DSP’s integration delivered a 12.6% lift in purchase intent for what the announcement refers to as a “leading luxury retailer”; an almost 10% lift in brand favorability; and a 28% more cost-effective CPC than the retailer’s holiday average. Those using Yahoo DSP can now take advantage of Wunderkind’s high-performing pause ads, unlocking scalable access to formats proven to lift purchase intent, strengthen brand perception, and drive more efficient results.