The IPG Media Lab takes a look at the emerging technologies and market forces that are taking shape in its "Outlook 2017 The Next Wave" report. Among the themes the Lab highlights: advanced interfaces, global culture, and augmented intelligence.

Google's move last week on marketing-mix modeling represents a small step in supporting independent measurement. Google said its Marketing Mix Model (MMM) Partners program will offer reporting and service for a few companies including Ipsos, Neustar's Marketshare, Nielsen and other vendors who apply.

In a recent report, Forrester projected that 24.7 million jobs will be lost to automation by 2027 -- a loss of 17% between 2017 and 2027. Still Forrester estimated that new technology will also create 14.9 million new jobs in the next decade, equivalent to 10% of the workforce through 2027.

Havas is offering its employees training in programmatic principles. The Paris-based agency holding company in February kicked off a global online training program on programmatic through its Havas University portal.

The notion of identity is at the core of so-called people-based marketing. Marketers want to know who their customers are, their dispositions, preferences, and the like, and understand their behavior across devices, online and offline in the store, at home, and events.

Google has been creating a steady drip of new developments in recent weeks as it seeks to assure marketers that it's addressing brand safety issues. A new program for marketing-mix providers aims to help them improve how Google media data is incorporated into their services. The Marketing Mix Model Partners program seeks to address how marketing spend spurs sales, yet doesn't embrace multi-touch attribution.

Brand safety can't be assured with technology 100% of the time -- human intervention is necessary, said one ad-tech executive.

New location-targeting guidelines issued by the Media Rating Council will help location targeting progress, but more mprovements in measurement and attribution are also needed.

Google has quietly removed what's referred to as its "last-look" advantage in real-time auctions. This means that Google tweaked the auction so that it doesn't give itself the advantage of a "first-look" in allocating bids.

Concerns over Google's YouTube and brand safety are "much ado about nothing," in the view of one digital industry vet, who says ultimately, it's in advertisers' and agencies' best interests to get media up and running again. Kevin Ryan, founder of Motivity Media, said there's really no way anyone can guarantee with 100% certainty that brand marketers' ads will never appear next to offensive material.