Welcome to Week In Review
From new tools transforming creative work, to campaigns reshaped by automation, we track the biggest shifts at the intersection of AI, media, and marketing. This week, Google disputes reports Gemini will introduce ads in 2026, Disney and OpenAI’s Sora ink a $1 billion licensing agreement, and McDonalds pulls their AI ad over online backlash.
Top Stories of the Week
Google Disputes Gemini Will Introduce Ads
Google has disputed reports that it will introduce ads in Gemini next year. AdWeek reported this week that Google told advertising clients it plans to introduce ads in its AI chatbot Gemini, targeting a 2026 launch. Soon after, however, Google denied these claims calling them ‘uninformed’.
Why it matters: Placing ads in Gemini would signal Google’s intent to monetise conversational AI, potentially reshaping digital advertising. It could open a major new channel for brands, alter user expectations of chatbots, and intensify competition with rivals like OpenAI and Microsoft – with ads in all these tools being highly anticipated.
Disney Invests in Sora
The Walt Disney Company is investing $1 billion in OpenAI, allowing licensed Star Wars, Pixar and Marvel characters to be used in OpenAI’s video generation tool Sora and ChatGPT image tools from 2026.
Why it matters: This major partnership signals Hollywood’s growing adoption of GenAI, despite ongoing concerns about compensation and intellectual property rights. The lucrative deal has already been criticised by many in the creative industry over concerns around AI replacing creative roles.
McDonalds Pulls AI Ad After Backlash
McDonald’s Netherlands removed a 45-second AI-generated Christmas advert after online backlash criticising its uncanny visuals and use of GenAI.
Why it matters: Released on 6 December, the ad was pulled three days later, with McDonald’s calling it a learning moment amid wider debate over AI-use in ad creation and job displacement in the industry. Last year, Coca-Cola released its own AI ad that garnered wide criticism online – however, the beverages giant doubled down on the use of AI, releasing another AI Christmas ad this year.
Quote of the Week
Brands & Agencies
Havas Acquires Kaimera To Accelerate AI Strategy
Havas acquired Kaimera, an independent agency, to expand its presence in Australia and New Zealand. The acquisition will help the agency accelerate the deployment of its Converged.AI strategy, said Yannick Bolloré, chairman and CEO, Havas.
WPP Media Releases Revenue Predictions, Highlights Importance of AI
WPP Media shared its 2025 end-of-year forecast, as global ad revenue is set to grow 8.8 percent to $1.14 trillion in 2025. The company partially attributes this growth to the AI boom. WPP will begin assessing companies’ success this year, including scoring them on AI and tech capabilities, the company said in a blog post.
Walgreens Partners With Rokt for AI Media Expansion
Walgreens announced a partnership with ecommerce company Rokt to enhance its advertising experiences using AI. “By expanding our retail media ecosystem with AI powered capabilities, we’re giving advertisers new ways to engage with customers in meaningful moments while creating incremental value for Walgreens.” said Abishake Subramanian, Group VP, Consumer Marketing, Loyalty and Walgreens Advertising Group.
Dollar Shave Club Releases First AI-Generated Ad
Razor company Dollar Shave Club released its first ad which used AI in its creation. The ad pokes fun at AI itself, referencing replacing Dollar Shave Club employees with AI. The brand partnered with directors Too Short For Modelling to create unique visuals with AI, including a razor-shaped skyscraper and a gorilla using Dollar Shave Club’s products.
Media
Instagram Rolls Out Algorithm Customisation Tool
Instagram introduced a new AI-powered feature which allows users to curate their Reels feeds by modifying what types of content the platform recommends. The feature, called “Your Algorithm,” lists topics it thinks the user is interested in. Topics can be adjusted by how frequently they will appear in Reels content going forward.
First Licensing Standard To Protect Content in AI Era is Released
The publisher-backed initiative the RSL Technical Steering Committee announced the release of Really Simple Licensing 1.0, the first licensing standard geared toward protecting content in the AI era. The standard was developed in collaboration with publishers and organisations including Yahoo and O’Reilly Media. It aims to serve as transparent usage and licensing guidelines for AI systems as digital content is used for training.
Google Announces First AI Licensing Deals
Google confirmed its first AI licensing deals, as it is piloting a partnership programme with news publishers. Its partners include Der Spiegel, The Guardian, The Times of India, and The Washington Post. The partnership aims to “explore how AI can help drive more engaged audiences,” Google said in a statement.
The Washington Post Launches AI-Powered Podcasts
The Washington Post debuted its first AI-powered podcasts, to deliver a higher level of personalisation and attract younger audiences. “Your Personal Podcast” was created with AI startup ElevenLabs, and is available on the Post’s mobile app.
Meta Partners With News Publishers To Boost AI Content
Meta announced it has struck deals with multiple news outlets, including CNN, Fox News, People Inc., and USA TODAY Co., to improve its AI outputs. The partnership will allow for Meta AI to deliver more time-sensitive information, while ensuring the publishers are properly cited for the content.
South Korea Will Require AI Ad Labels To Prevent Deepfakes
South Korea will require advertisers to disclose when AI has been used in ad production starting next year. The country aims to crack down on a rise in false product promotions for products like cosmetics and weight loss pills, including endorsements from AI-generated celebrities or influencers.
EU Launches Antitrust Investigation Over Content Use
The European Commission has launched an antitrust investigation into whether Google is unfairly using publisher and creator content to train its AI models. The probe will focus primarily on Google’s AI Overviews and AI Mode features and how website and YouTube content is used, without permission, to train and surface in AI summaries – a phenomenon actively damaging user traffic and online advertising.
Tech
Shopify Unveils Agentic AI Storefronts
Shopify announced the release of Shopify Agentic Storefronts, an online shopping platform that uses AI agents to automate merchandising, marketing, and customer interactions. The storefront helps Shopify brands get discovered on AI platforms like ChatGPT, Microsoft Copilot, and Perplexity, the ecommerce company said in its announcement.
Google Launches AI-Powered Fashion Discovery Feed
Google Labs released a fashion discovery feed in Doppl, the company’s experimental AI app. The AI-powered feed will provide personalised recommendations, including AI-generated videos of actual products and outfit ideas based on user preferences.
Spotify Tests AI-Prompted Playlists
Spotify announced “Promoted Playlists,” a new feature which creates playlists based on AI prompts. Users can write what they would like to see in a playlist, and the playlist will be created for them. The tool takes into account the user’s current and past music preferences, Spotify said. Promoted Playlists is currently in beta and will be first rolled out to Premium users in New Zealand.
LinkedIn Expands AI-Driven Ad Creation Tools
LinkedIn launched new AI tools enabling advertisers to generate multiple ad variants and personalise campaigns including “Ad Personalisation” and “AI Ad Variants”. The features aim to simplify creative production while improving ad performance across LinkedIn’s ads platform.
Adobe Brings Photoshop, Express, and Acrobat to ChatGPT
Adobe announced Adobe Photoshop, Adobe Express, and Adobe Acrobat for ChatGPT, making the creative tools more widely accessible through the ChatGPT platform. This release of these ChatGPT-specific tools enables more conversational editing, enhanced content generation, and document assistance. Users can give ChatGPT requests like “Adobe Photoshop, help me blur the background of this image.” ChatGPT will then open the Photoshop app to complete the request, using contextual understanding.
Start-Up of the Week
Seattle-based startup Scowtt has raised $12 million in Series A funding led by Inspired Capital to scale its AI-powered advertising platform. Founded in 2024, the company uses predictive models and first-party CRM data to improve paid media performance, claiming conversion lifts of more than 50 percent.
Number of the Week
Creative software company Adobe reported its latest earnings this week, with a boost in annual profits driven by record revenue of $23.77b for 2025 – an 11 percent increase year-on-year. Much of this growth, according to Adobe, is related to the company going all-in on AI integrations for its image, video, and audio softwares. “Adobe’s record FY2025 results reflect our growing importance in the global AI ecosystem and the rapid adoption of our AI-driven tools,” said Adobe CEO Shantanu Narayen.
