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The news: Despite the shift toward programmatic advertising, a study from the Association of National Advertisers (ANA) identified a lingering issue with the trend: The growth of wasted ad spending. The amount of wasted ad spend in programmatic advertising has risen 34% in two years, up to $26.8 billion from $20 billion in June 2023. Our take: The efficiency and growing relevance of programmatic comes with brand safety trade-offs, making transparency and stronger verification a prerequisite for sustained investment.

The news: OpenAI CEO Sam Altman is warning of a growing AI investment bubble. 鈥淎re we in a phase where investors are overexcited about AI? My opinion is yes,鈥� Altman said during a dinner with a group of reporters, per The Verge. Still, he emphasized that AI remains 鈥渢he most important thing to happen in a very long time.鈥� Our take: Altman鈥檚 warning about an AI bubble applies to marketers too. The temptation to chase every shiny new AI tool is real, but teams should develop an AI experimentation roadmap with clear outcomes to avoid wasting resources. Pushing vendors for case studies can help maximize budgets.

The news: As entry-level roles for younger hires shrink, ad schools are retooling their programs to promote AI fluency and skills. Miami Ad School, Virginia Commonwealth University鈥檚 Brandcenter, and London鈥檚 School of Communication Arts are adding AI education curriculum focused on concepting, campaign execution, and portfolio development, per Adweek. Our take: CMOs who understand how AI is reshaping both entry-level roles and leadership expectations will be in a better position to build resilient, AI-ready teams. However, companies shouldn鈥檛 focus only on hiring junior employees with existing AI literacy鈥攌eeping resources open to train both new and current workers as AI evolves will encourage a diversity of skills and experience on staff.

Retailers have built lucrative revenue streams from retail media networks (RMNs), leveraging on-site ad inventory and first-party transaction data. As the potential grows for consumers to shop through AI agents instead of retailer sites or apps, those data streams and ad surfaces are at risk.

The news: YouTube has made an official inquiry about purchasing the rights to future Academy Awards ceremonies in its latest live events push, per Bloomberg. The move comes after viewership increased slightly for the most recent Oscars ceremony, driven by simultaneous airing on ABC and Hulu. Our take: Rather than competing head-on with broadcast, YouTube can position itself as a complementary streaming partner that extends the Oscars鈥� reach by highlighting shifting viewership trends that capture audiences broadcast alone struggles to reach and its edge in premium video advertising.

MS NOW rebrand targets broader news reach: MSNBC aims to scale beyond its niche as TV audiences fragment globally.

The report: Amazon is reportedly keeping its Prime Big Deal Days event to two days, per Modern Retail. If true, that鈥檚 a bit of a surprise鈥攁nd runs counter to our prediction of a longer sale on a recent episode of Reimagining Retail鈥攁fter Amazon touted that doubling Prime Day to four days in July produced its 鈥渂iggest Prime Day event ever,鈥� with record sales and more items sold than any previous four-day Prime Day stretch. Amazon could not be reached for comment. Our take: If Amazon limits Big Deal Days to two days, it underscores the pressures retailers face in the back half of the year as tariffs squeeze consumers and sellers. We expect Amazon鈥檚 sales to rise 8.8% during the event, a considerable slowdown from last year鈥檚 32.0% surge. But with holiday sales forecast to grow just 1.2%, that performance may be a relative win. The bigger challenge will be sustaining momentum into Q4, as Amazon and its rivals juggle sharp discounts with the need to preserve profitability amid restrained consumer spending.

The trend: Paper coupons are making a comeback as brands zig while their competitors zag. Direct-to-consumer upstarts like Viv For Your V, Culture Pop, and Blume are experimenting with print coupons to drive awareness and trial, per Modern Retail. The move runs counter to an industry leaning heavily digital, where advertising costs are climbing and consumer attention is fragmented. And it鈥檚 not just startups. Kroger recently introduced paper versions of its weekly digital deals after hearing from shoppers who struggle with online access, aiming to bridge the so-called 鈥渄igital divide.鈥� Our take: Brands鈥� use of paper coupons mirrors retailers like Dollar General, Neiman Marcus, and Amazon, which have experimented with print catalogs to grab attention in a digital-first world. With shoppers increasingly price-sensitive, less brand loyal, and actively seeking deals, a tangible coupon in hand may be just the nudge that turns browsing into buying in today鈥檚 cautious consumer climate.

The trend: Brands are ramping up legal action over perceived infringements of their intellectual property. Our take: With brand loyalty ebbing as price concerns take priority, more companies are leaning on the law to keep rivals from undercutting their business. But there are limits: Ecommerce marketplaces like Amazon, Walmart, Temu, and Shein are crammed to the gills with dupes that are incredibly difficult to crack down on. While companies should protect their IP wherever possible, they also need to make clear to shoppers why their products are better than knockoff versions鈥攁nd why they鈥檙e worth full price.

The news: Cava invested $10 million in Hyphen, the robotics startup behind Chipotle鈥檚 automated kitchen line prototype, which Chipotle has backed. Our take: QSRs鈥� automation bets signal a broader shift toward augmented labor rather than outright replacement. For Cava, the upside lies in freeing employees for higher-value tasks like hospitality while improving speed and accuracy for digital-first customers. But if automation expands from back-of-house prep into other areas such as beverage dispensing and loyalty-driven upselling, chains will need to walk a fine line. Too much efficiency at the expense of the human touch risks alienating customers who still value personal connection. In the long term, the winners will be those that strike the right balance between efficiency and experience.

32% of US connected TV (CTV) users find traditional TV ads useful/helpful for holiday gift info, while 34% say the same about streaming TV ads, according to June 2025 data from LG Ad Solutions.

On today鈥檚 podcast episode, we discuss if the death of the Late Show is 鈥渢he canary in the linear coal mine鈥� and the biggest takeaways from the landmark NFL and ESPN deal. Join our conversation with Senior Director of Podcasts and host, Marcus Johnson, Senior Editor, Daniel Konstantinovic, and Vice President of Content, Paul Verna. Listen everywhere you find podcasts and watch on YouTube and Spotify.

"Sometimes a brand puts out a campaign and the internet goes wild, but it's not always in the way that the brand had hoped," said our analyst Suzy Davidkhanian on a recent episode of 鈥淏ehind the Numbers.鈥� For example, a recent American Eagle jeans campaign featuring Sydney Sweeney sparked controversy, with headlines like "Sydney Sweeney under fire after controversial American Eagle ad campaign" to "American Eagle stock rises after Trump praises Sydney Sweeney ad amid backlash."

Only 40% of US retail media networks (RMNs) offer self-service sales data, according to Q2 data from Mars United Commerce.

Execution missteps remain a stubborn issue in grocery retail. Nearly half (48%) of shoppers have encountered pricing mismatches or promotional errors at checkout鈥攁 frequent frustration that quietly undermines trust, per a consumer survey commissioned by store intelligence provider Simbe. At a time when brand loyalty is waning, strong execution and a seamless in-store experience can be a powerful competitive advantage.

Video games now reach players of all ages, but kids and teens remain key to growth. Recent data shows who's gaming, what revenue forecasts look like, and gamers' sentiments about ads.

AI shopping assistants are reshaping product discovery and threatening retail media鈥檚 search-driven model. RMNs and advertisers need to adjust strategies to protect their market position and seize the opportunity to turn disruption into growth.

The advertising industry鈥檚 age and experience mix is shifting fast. In the US, entry-level roles are shrinking as automation replaces routine tasks, while in Australia, 鈥渏uniorisation鈥� favors younger, digitally fluent hires over seasoned veterans. Agencies face a balancing act鈥攂ringing in Gen Z talent to master AI-driven tools and authentically shape campaigns, while retaining senior expertise crucial for strategy, oversight, and client trust. Without a robust entry-level pipeline today, the industry risks a future shortage of homegrown leaders just as marketing grows more complex.

Nearly two-thirds of US consumers (63%) believe businesses are taking advantage of the challenging economic climate to raise prices, according to a survey by The Harris Poll. Still, consumers shouldn鈥檛 be surprised by tariff surcharges at checkout. Businesses should avoid the urge to use tariffs as an excuse to pad their margins and instead aim to keep prices on popular items as steady as possible while clearly explaining unavoidable increases.