AI shopping is forcing marketers to rethink which digital channels matter most for brand visibility. For years, marketers have concentrated resources on two questions: Where do consumers spend their time, and where do they spend their money? AI product recommendations add a third: Where do large language models (LLMs) get the information that shapes what they recommend? “You also need to consider where these LLMs are sourcing recommendations,” said our analyst Blake Droesch during EMARKETER's Future of Digital summit.
Muse, a personal AI agent that carries out tasks like searches and shopping on its user’s behalf, has already proven popular. It launched in the US on September 8 and passed 2.5 million downloads by September 21, with an estimated 448,000 daily users by day 10.
In August 2026, we analyzed 4,680 ChatGPT recommendations across 20 consumer health categories to compile the AI Visibility Index.
Unity and AppLovin clash over data collection: The small-but-competitive mobile game ad market makes proprietary data crucial.
In Q3 2026, we analyzed 4,010 ChatGPT recommendations across 13 tech hardware and device categories to compile the AI Visibility Index.
Consumers are looking for more than the lowest price. New research shows shoppers are weighing cashback, rewards, convenience, and product quality as AI and savings tools make it easier to get more from every dollar.
Tools for cash flow, taxes, and marketing extend its agentic strategy beyond payments.
Existing customers show strong purchase intent, while Gen Z makes an active presence especially valuable.
Consumers still pay for convenience and content, but younger users treat services as disposable.
Users can virtually try on apparel and save products, making discovery more interactive.
Marketers are no longer debating whether to use AI in content production; they're refining how.
73% of marketers worldwide use generative AI for visual, image or video production, but just 41% use it for testing and optimization, according to a May survey from WARC and TikTok.
Payments to publishers for AI Overview content won’t stop the open web’s decline.
Its AI model forecast conversions with 81% accuracy, enabling it to redirect ad spending to assets most likely to deliver results.
The company is trying to own ordering, fulfillment, returns, and merchant workflows.
New CEO Roger Lynch inherits a business built to extend Barbie and Hot Wheels into media and gaming.
AI is compressing the path from discovery to conversion, with consumers arriving at brands later and further along in their decisions. That shift is raising a new question for marketers: What should the brand experience look like when the website is no longer the center of the journey?
The Edits assistant can power stronger branded videos as long as marketers clarify campaign priorities.
Governance mandates are essential to prevent poor verification of AI insights from affecting the bottom line.