The Latest Ad-dition
Remember when OpenAI accidentally leaked plans to launch ads in ChatGPT? Turns out, they might be coming sooner than expected.
People familiar with the talks say OpenAI has discussed letting its models surface sponsored content more prominently in responses.
A company spokesperson says there won’t be changes to ChatGPT’s main model. Instead, separate AI systems will “evaluate whether a conversation has commercial intent and then pull up the most relevant ads in ChatGPT responses,” per The Information.
According to an internal source cited by The Information, OpenAI is exploring ways to build new advertising products that are distinct from traditional social formats and can draw on insights from chat histories.
OpenAI is adamant that user trust will remain a priority. For example, the company claims that an ad will most likely only appear after a user shows clear interest or purchase intent, so that the model can be confident the ad is relevant.
Still, as of June, only 2.1% of ChatGPT queries were related to purchasable products – although that number will no doubt increase as ecommerce platforms and LLMs start working more closely together.
TikTok Tailwinds?
Buyers are still traumatized from when Twitter changed owners in 2022 and became X.
New owner Elon Musk actually sued advertisers for not spending enough, for Pete’s sake.
So perhaps it’s no surprise that marketers feel some trepidation about TikTok’s new US ownership deal – and the possibility that political drama and management turmoil could derail a major platform, Digiday reports.
Last year, TikTok faced mounting uncertainty about a potential ban, underwent major layoffs and saw key executives departures as the company scrambled to restructure ahead of its US divestiture.
To be fair, TikTok’s situation is different from what went down at Twitter. Musk’s takeover was borderline hostile, whereas TikTok’s ownership shift is more of a negotiated handoff. But the parallels are undeniable.
“Losing that level of talent [and] understanding of what advertisers are looking for, that’s hard to make up for,” says Noah Mallin, founder of marketing consultancy Mallination.
But TikTok has something that X (and even Twitter before it) never had: strong ad performance, billion-user scale and a legit ecommerce foothold.
TikTok is “where people are,” an agency exec tells Digiday. “Advertisers are going to want to follow those eyeballs.”
The Delete Button
New year, new data privacy protections in California, which is already known for having some of the strictest privacy laws in the US.
Now, Californians officially have a one-stop shop to request that advertisers delete all of their data, The Washington Post reports. A state-run website for data deletion requests went live on New Year’s Day.
Anyone who uses the internet will at some point have their data captured by any number of advertisers and data brokers. Some states introduced laws requiring these companies to honor data deletion requests, but consumers typically have to petition each individual company.
However, California’s “Delete Act” amended the state’s existing data broker law by requiring the creation of a single entity responsible for fielding deletion requests. Importantly, these requests are broadly applicable.
Although the state is now handling universal data deletion requests, data brokers aren’t obligated to comply until later this year.
Still, this marks a major change to how one of the largest and most valuable US markets handles personalized online advertising. California is now a testing ground for how new consumer data protections will work in practice. And, as has been the case before, other states may soon follow its lead.
But Wait! There’s More
AI-generated CSAM images appeared on X due to “lapses” in Grok AI’s “safeguards,” according to a response generated by the chatbot. [Reuters]
Unilever’s “influencer‑first” pivot in 2025 sent a clear signal that creator-led campaigns are now central, not experimental, in mainstream brand marketing. [The Drum]
Agencies are looking for new skills when hiring these days – specifically, AI proficiency. [Digiday]
Is ChatGPT the new app store? (Spoiler alert: No.) [WSJ]
Omnicom is using CES as the first major showcase of its combined capabilities and unified brand following its $13.5 billion acquisition of IPG. [Adweek]
A US judge blocked the deportation of British anti-disinformation activist Imran Ahmed, who was sanctioned by the Trump administration after the EU tightened rules on American tech giants. [BBC]
Following a leak of WIRED’s subscriber database, the hackers threaten that more data leaks will follow – including 40 million lines related to other Condé Nast publications. [Infostealers]
Meta created an internal “playbook” to fend off pressure to crack down on scam ads and protect its ad revenue. [Reuters]
You’re Hired!
Bari Bucci joins Cadent as VP of DSP solutions. [LinkedIn post]
