Adobe introduced a full version of its Premiere video-editing app for iPhone users, offering new opportunities for on-the-go content creation. Premiere on iPhone includes features like sound effects, auto-generated captions, and multi-track timelines for video, audio, and text. It’s free for general editing, and generative AI (genAI) features are available on a pay-per-credit model. Brands that work with influencers should package assets so they’re easier for creators to use on the go and be flexible with formats and publishing schedules to support workflows for more timely, high-impact campaigns.

ByteDance will maintain control over TikTok’s US ecommerce and advertising businesses under the deal brokered by the White House, according to Reuters. Continued uncertainty around the TikTok deal and broader economic terms requires brands and advertisers to stay flexible. That’s harder to do for sellers, since few social commerce alternatives have the scale and success of TikTok Shop. Still, platforms like YouTube and Pinterest can offer similar opportunities to engage, inspire, and educate shoppers, while live commerce platforms like Whatnot and creator-led shopping app LTK could also emerge as winners should TikTok’s influence fade.

President Trump delayed TikTok’s ban until December 16 and claimed Rupert Murdoch, Lachlan Murdoch, Michael Dell, Larry Ellison, and Marc Andreessen are among investors preparing to acquire its US operations. The potential buyer group—stacked with conservative media and tech moguls—raises concerns over political bias on a platform where left-leaning influencers currently dominate. For advertisers, TikTok’s massive 116.6 million US user base remains critical, but ownership politics could shift user trust and open the door for rivals.

TikTok’s US operations may soon be spun off into a new entity majority-owned by American investors, with Oracle, Andreessen Horowitz, and Silver Lake leading the deal. The framework, aimed at complying with the 2024 divest-or-ban law, would give US investors roughly 80% control while ByteDance retains under 20%. The sticking point remains TikTok’s algorithm—whether ByteDance licenses its technology or a US-controlled version is rebuilt. For marketers, continuity is key: any disruption in recommendation performance, targeting, or data oversight could alter ad outcomes on one of their most important platforms.

Asia-Pacific has the largest retail and ecommerce sales in the world. While China continues to dominate global ecommerce share, India and Southeast Asia are increasingly driving growth. As consumer sentiment improves in China, the retail sales gap with the first-place US will narrow in the coming years.

TikTok’s 2024 revenues in the UK, Europe, and Latin America surged 38% to $6.3 billion, more than doubling 2022 levels, per filings cited by Forbes. The growth underscores TikTok’s strength outside the US, where a divest-or-ban standoff continues. Yet regulatory scrutiny in Europe looms large, with over $1 billion reserved for fines, ongoing probes across multiple countries, and potential penalties under the EU’s Digital Services Act. TikTok’s UK penetration tops 32%, with ad revenues projected to triple by 2027. Still, layoffs in trust and safety roles and a pivot to AI moderation could test regulators and user trust.

The news: ByteDance’s TikTok paid people to lend their likenesses to digital avatars, often paying less than $1,000 per actor, per The New York Times. The avatars, which are free for TikTok advertisers to use, were meant for TikTok alone but have appeared on ByteDance’s video-editing tool CapCut and on platforms like Facebook and YouTube. Our take: AI-based productions are democratizing advertising, allowing even the smallest firms to produce high-quality ads with minimal effort and budgets. Forty-five percent of smaller advertisers will use generative AI (genAI) in their videos by 2026, per IAB’s 2025 Digital Video Ad Spend Report. However, brands must weigh the benefits against the risks, considering 31% of US adults say AI use in ads would make them less likely to buy, per CivicScience.

The news: Nvidia is facing a new obstacle in its ability to sell chips to China—Chinese authorities are urging ByteDance, Alibaba, Tencent, and others to halt purchases of Nvidia hardware. This follows an agreement between President Donald Trump, Nvidia, and AMD that requires the two companies give the US government a 15% cut of Chinese chip revenues in exchange for permission to sell hardware there, per Bloomberg. Our take: ability to develop and deploy AI models for things like algorithm recommendations, content moderation, and generative AI (genAI) features. Marketers should diversify their AI-powered marketing tools to stay ahead if TikTok’s ad products and UX features develop more slowly.

The news: A US TikTok ban will take effect if a sale isn’t completed by the September 17 deadline, per comments from US Commerce Secretary Howard Lutnick. Lutnick said on CNBC that TikTok will “go dark” if China does not agree to sell to a US owner. He also noted that any deal would require the US gaining control over both the app and its algorithms. Our take: Whether or not a full TikTok ban comes to pass, Lutnick’s comments reinforce a troubling trend: Advertisers are increasingly wary of the platform’s stability, accelerating the shift toward cross-platform strategies.

Digital’s rapid adoption in recent years has made it the dominant medium with which people spend time in China, Japan, and South Korea, with consumption booming in India.

Our midyear report revisits the top trends we named in early 2025 to see what’s shaping the market, evolving fast, or fading in the rearview mirror.

The news: ByteDance is working on lightweight mixed-reality goggles that could directly challenge Meta’s products, per The Information. Our take: If ByteDance can leverage its content ecosystem, creator network, and powerful algorithm, it could carve out a foothold with younger, social media–savvy users. Brands could sponsor AR lenses and place products within digital overlays to turn everyday activities into shoppable moments.

Social network user growth will be slow on a worldwide level, but 2025’s meager 2.9% increase will still equate to more than 115 million new users. Facebook remains in the lead in most countries and regions, even though its share of internet users is declining.

The news: TikTok is reportedly exploring a US-only version of the app amid ongoing discussions of a US ban and selloff, per The Information. The new app is said to align with the requirements of the Protecting Americans from Foreign Adversary Controlled Applications Act. Our take: A US-specific app would allow TikTok to potentially regain advertiser confidence in a critical market—but the new app’s success depends on how a new algorithm would impact the user experience.

The only certain thing about TikTok’s sale is more uncertainty: Washington keeps kicking the can on a US sale, leaving TikTok to convince advertisers not to panic.

The news: President Donald Trump is expected to sign another executive order extending TikTok’s sale deadline as the current June 19 deadline approaches, marking the third extension since Trump took office. Our take: Trump is likely to continue extending TikTok’s sale deadline—but with each extension, brand confidence plummets further as the platform’s long term sustainability remains shrouded in uncertainty. The brands that will be most successful aren’t those that are crossing their fingers for TikTok’s survival, but those that are investing in contingency plans and platform-agnostic strategies that can pivot quickly.

US TikTok Shop employees prepare for layoffs: Tariffs and de minimis changes have pushed the platform’s ambitious commerce goal further out of reach.

TikTok is ByteDance’s global engine: Despite slowing growth in China, the platform continues to expand monetization and user base worldwide.

Its next-gen models are built to generate big ideas, not small talk—aiming squarely at science and high-value enterprise work.

BeReal launches its US ad business: The platform is looking to capitalize on TikTok’s uncertain future in the US.