Latest Marketing & Advertising News
Google expands AI Overview ads to 11 more countries
Google has quietly expanded **ads inside AI Overviews** to 11 additional English-language markets including Australia, Canada, India, and Singapore, creating a major new paid search surface. Ads are triggered by both query intent and AI-generated summary context, cannot be opted out of, and currently lack isolated reporting, reducing transparency and forcing marketers to rethink targeting, bidding, and measurement strategies.
IAB Tech Lab outlines unified standards for agentic advertising AI
IAB Tech Lab has released an **agentic AI roadmap** that extends standards like OpenRTB, AdCOM, OpenDirect, and VAST with newer protocols such as Model Context Protocol and Agent2Agent. The initiative aims to prevent fragmentation as platforms build competing AI ad systems, providing common rails for AI-powered buying, measurement, and interoperability across the programmatic ecosystem.
Zeta Global partners with OpenAI to power Athena marketing agent
Zeta Global announced a **strategic collaboration with OpenAI** to enhance Athena, its “superintelligent” marketing agent for enterprises. OpenAI models will power Athena’s conversational intelligence and two new agentic applications—Insights and Advisor—designed to help marketers analyze data, answer questions faster, and automate parts of campaign decisioning.
Optimove unveils upgraded AI-powered email marketing platform
Customer-led marketing platform Optimove has launched a **new version of its Email Marketing Solution** with expanded AI features. The update introduces AI content recommendation agents, kinetic email widgets, enhanced data ingestion, and an event engine that automatically triggers highly personalized emails based on external behaviors, reducing reliance on external agencies.
Digital video and social media cement top priority status for advertisers
US digital media experts rank **digital video and social media** as leading ad investment priorities for 2026, according to new research summarized by eMarketer. While 84% cite social media as a top priority, lingering brand safety concerns—especially around genAI-generated content on platforms like YouTube and X—are prompting closer scrutiny of placement and greater use of optimization tools on Meta and Reddit.
Pinterest loses its first global CMO amid Gen Z growth push
Pinterest has lost its **first-ever global chief marketing officer**, creating uncertainty around brand leadership as the platform aggressively courts Gen Z. The company is simultaneously leaning into curated inspiration, safety features, and new AI-driven shopping and personalization experiences to strengthen its position as a commerce and discovery channel for younger audiences.
Puma appoints Nadia Kokni as new senior global brand marketer
Puma has named **Nadia Kokni** as vice president of global brand marketing, replacing Richard Teyssier following an internal reorganization. The move follows Puma’s largest-ever global campaign, “Go Wild,” developed with Adam&eveDDB to codify its brand DNA and will shape future creative, sports marketing, and lifestyle positioning worldwide.
AI becomes core marketing infrastructure in 2026 global trends
New global trends analysis highlights **AI operating at scale as core marketing infrastructure**, reshaping how brands create, govern, and distribute content. Discovery is shifting toward AI assistants such as ChatGPT and Perplexity, while brands that invest in structured content, governed templates, and AI-supported workflows are expected to outperform those relying on fragmented processes.
Paid media marketers urged to pivot toward conversational and AI-driven ads
A new playbook on paid media recommends **eight major changes** for 2026, including embracing conversational AI in ad creation and refining targeting with deeper data signals. Marketers are advised to adapt to privacy shifts, zero-click environments, and AI-mediated search by focusing on creative testing, incrementality measurement, and tighter alignment between search, social, and retail media channels.
Top 10 digital marketing trends for 2026 emphasize AI, social commerce, and AR/VR
A fresh trends overview identifies **AI-driven personalization, social commerce, and immersive AR/VR experiences** as key forces reshaping digital marketing in 2026. The report also underscores growing importance of privacy-first data practices, voice and visual search optimization, and more authentic influencer marketing with micro-influencers driving purchase decisions.
Retention marketing shifts to AI-driven hyper-personalization and omnichannel CRM
New 2026 retention marketing guidance highlights **hyper-personalization powered by AI** and automated retention flows as the backbone of modern CRM. Brands are moving from static segments to real-time, behavior-based AI segmentation across email, SMS, and other channels, and integrating these efforts into unified omnichannel journeys to boost engagement and lifetime value.
MarTech leaders spotlight AI’s predictive role in content and campaign strategy
Recent MarTech coverage emphasizes **AI’s role in predictive analytics** for content and advertising, with experts like Neil Patel describing AI as a “crystal ball” for consumer behavior. By simulating outcomes of different creative and channel mixes, generative AI is helping marketers forecast performance and allocate budgets more efficiently across campaigns.