Adding non-payments uses could make the wallet more convenient, helping Google pull new users and grab spending

Disney says AI could make QR-code shoppable marketing obsolete: At a TV advertising event, Disney and YouTube shared how AI has already changed their strategies.

Google put ads in its Search Generative Experience. YouTube has a new unskippable 30-second ad spot. HBO Max relaunched as Max. And The Kroger Co. is paving the way with in-store retail media. Here are what updates from these companies and more mean for advertisers.

ChatGPT may have all of the buzz when it comes to AI platforms, but marketing technology and platforms are quickly catching up by adding a host of AI features to their systems. For starters, Adobe unveiled “Generative Fill” in Photoshop last week, a feature that uses AI to extend the canvas of your design, fill in backgrounds, and more. Meanwhile, Acquia unveiled a chatbot within its digital asset management platform.

On today's special episode, we continue our new monthly show where we discuss the biggest trends of the moment and the newest research, sprinkle in some analysis, and bundle it up into a quiz. Every month, three of our analysts representing their respective coverage area teams compete against each other. (We also encourage you to play along at home.) We’ll keep a running score all year and crown a winning team at the end of the year. Today, we cover Google reinventing search, Amazon's grocery strategy, and what Twitter appointing a new CEO means for growth. Tune in to the discussion with this month's contestants: our analysts Ross Benes, Blake Droesch, and Debra Aho Williamson.

In China, ecommerce channel ad spending represents over 38% of total digital ad spending, and ecommerce search spending accounts for 64.0% of total search. Could the US figures reach similar heights?

On today's episode, we discuss which attention metrics are real, which are still in development, and where identity and addressability will be by the end of the year. "In Other News," we talk about how much Microsoft and Apple can encroach on Google's search turf and YouTube debuting unskippable 30-second ads. Tune in to the discussion with our analyst Evelyn Mitchell and Kunal Nagpal, chief business officer of InMobi.

Nearly half (49.0%) of advertisers worldwide believe that activating their own first-party data is the most promising solution to cookie deprecation, according to DoubleVerify. However, only 16.6% of publishers say the same of this solution. Publishers’ top choice for replacing cookie-dependent tools is publisher first-party data activation, chosen as a promising solution by just 27.1% of advertisers.

The AI-assisted search revolution will take place primarily on the nonretail battleground, which is still dominated by Google. But Google lost share of the market last year, and Microsoft and Apple are starting to appear a little closer in Google’s rearview mirror.

Cryptocurrency volatility has tempered expectations for crypto payments. But it hasn’t erased them: Retail, remittance, and cross-border B2B payments remain in growth mode.

As the so-called AI arms race heats up, US site visit data from digital intelligence platform Similarweb reflects early changes in consumer behavior.

Search is positioned to be generative AI’s first major consumer-facing playground. This is unexplored territory, and advertisers are bracing for big changes.

Generative AI is poised to reshape the search advertising market. With a significant first-mover advantage, will Microsoft grow its share of search ad budgets? How can advertisers stay ahead of the curve?

The EU is ramping up its efforts in an antitrust probe into Apple Pay. But the Big Tech firm’s loyal customers should shield it from potential fallout.

US digital ad spend growth will return to double digits next year at 11.2% growth, following 2023’s slower growth of 7.8%. Growth certainly won’t return to the 37.6% growth we saw in 2021, but it will increase steadily. Come 2025, US digital ad spend will pass $300 billion and keep climbing to nearly $400 billion by the end of 2027.

Google turns to generative AI to give shoppers a helping hand: The search engine aims to simplify consumers’ purchase decisions by arming consumers with more information.

Microsoft makes bold, highly speculative agreement with Helion Energy: The tech giant is likely taking a leap of faith that AI will yield a nuclear fusion breakthrough in five years.

Microsoft’s new Bing has had a persistent hold over headlines. Combine this with a third consecutive quarter of ad loss for YouTube and the picture for Google may look less than rosy. But the company remains in good shape, with overall earnings beating expectations. It remains dominant in search, and YouTube use is still remarkably high. Here’s a closer look.

Digital ad spending will increase slightly faster this year than in 2022, but the bump will be minimal. Total media ad spending growth will roughly hold steady. But there are parts of the world where spending is surging.

Digital will help keep total media ad spending buoyant this year, just. A rebound is expected for 2024, with video advertising growing faster than any other format. Proportionally, though, video spend will remain relatively small in France and Germany.