Uber, Lyft, and Instacart fine-tune their ad strategies: The platforms are leaning into personalization and experimenting with formats as they try to boost revenues without alienating users.

Instacart’s ad growth slowed in Q4: That could create problems for the company as it relies more heavily on ads to offset softening grocery delivery demand.

On today's podcast episode, in our "Retail Me This, Retail Me That" segment, we discuss how buying alcohol online is different, what Uber’s shutdown of Drizly means for its retail media business, and how consumption habits are changing. Then for "Red-Hot Retail," our analysts give us four spicy predictions about the future of alcohol. Join our analyst Sara Lebow as she hosts analyst Blake Droesch and director of Briefings Jeremy Goldman.

This report presents five of the most intriguing and/or under-the-radar positive forecasts for 2024 that clients should be aware of, as compiled by our forecasting team.

Grocery is set to become the largest US ecommerce category by 2026.

On today's podcast episode, we discuss whether Uber's business is actually sustainable, how many Americans use ride-hailing apps, and what the ad opportunity is. "In Other News," we talk about whether there will be more—or fewer—self-checkout options by the end of next year and whether the world is ready to accept humanoid robots used by Amazon. Tune in to the discussion with our analyst Yory Wurmser.

77.6 million people in the US will use Uber or Lyft next year, according to our August 2023 forecast.

Instacart leans on advertising to bolster its bottom line: The company’s advertising revenues grew 19%, significantly outpacing the 4% growth in the number of online orders on its platform.

Grocery spending is slowly shifting online as consumers seek convenience: More shoppers are leveraging grocers’ ecommerce options as well as delivery platforms like DoorDash and Uber Eats.

Uber and Lyft are rapidly expanding their advertising platforms to take advantage of this growing user base—one that may prove to be a major audience for advertisers.

The ride-hailing industry will hit a new record for users and sales in 2023. As the market expands, both Lyft and Uber are laying the groundwork for significant advertising in the future.

On today's podcast episode, we discuss what social networks can't stop getting wrong, whether Amazon can make its app fun, if enough people care about voice assistants, whether Uber's "Return a Package" feature will take off, how AI may change entrepreneurship, which music format has made the most money for the music industry in the past 50 years, and more. Tune in to the discussion with our vice president of content Suzy Davidkhanian, vice president of Briefings Stephanie Taglianetti, and analyst Max Willens.

Amazon’s search capabilities are set for an AI-powered upgrade: The retailer will incorporate a chatbot to offer customers personalized suggestions based on their queries and shopping history.

Uber users may soon be able to hire handyman services through the app: The company is reportedly developing a service similar to TaskRabbit and Angi as it searches for growth opportunities.

On today's podcast episode, we discuss whether the way people watch sports has changed, if Uber and Lyft will ever be able to turn a profit, whether Peacock can keep its head above water, what happened to the TikTok ban, what The Walt Disney Co. should do with ESPN, who's not on the internet, and more. Tune in to the discussion with our forecasting writer Ethan Cramer-Flood and analysts Bill Fisher and Max Willens.

Instacart’s gross transaction volume grew just 5% in the first half: That’s a troubling number that can’t be glossed over by the company’s 30% revenue growth.

On today's episode, in our "Retail Me This, Retail Me That" segment, we discuss the changes in how US consumers buy groceries, strategies for building future growth in grocery, and who has the best shot at winning. Then in a newish segment, "Loyalty Point, Counter Point," we present arguments both in favor of and against Uber and DoorDash being able to push even further into grocery. Join our analyst Sara Lebow as she hosts analyst Blake Droesch and director of content Becky Shilling.

Our first-ever marketing and retail media survey explores the latest trends unfolding in Latin America, how the regional landscape will evolve, and the broader implications for ad buyers’ and retailers’ go-to-market strategies.