Mattel's collaboration with OpenAI will not materialize this year, as regulatory challenges emerge amid greater scrutiny of how kids and teens interact with artificial intelligence (AI) technology.

Growing competition among AI startups has infiltrated to loosen the hold of well-established players, putting a strain on technology developments.

Domino's transformed its ad into a remote-controlled trivia game, asking viewers a pizza-themed question before serving a 10-second promo for its Ultimate Gunpowder Chicken pizza.

A BrightEdge analysis of informational, consideration and transactional queries revealed patterns showing where the biggest competitive battles are - and it's not where most marketers might expect.

Research reveals 60% of marketers said ads in news environments outperform their campaign baselines, showing the media has become a high-performing, underused opportunity for brands that may have been hesitant in the past.

Data shows that consumers are open to holiday advertising. A study by GumGum found 75% are receptive to receiving ads and 31% enjoy holiday ads but despise constant retargeting.

Innovation from Google this year positioned brands to tackle what comes next with greater transparency and capabilities, including global ad expansion in AI Overviews, AI Max for Search, controls for Performance Max, Gemini-powered creative tools, the launch of Meridian and new agentic tools with partnerships with PayPal and others.

A study conducted by a neuro-contextual ad company in partnership with a neuroscientist at Columbia University found neuro-contextual ads deliver 3.5x higher neural engagement than non-contextual ads.

Unlike older, reactive chatbots, new technologies are proactive, using multimodal options and emotional awareness to detect user cues such as frustration or excitement.

YouTube confirmed Wednesday that it will adhere to Australia's upcoming social-media ban and remove accounts of Australian children under the age of 16 - even social media influencers.