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Traffic is up at Aldi and Lidl: With the cost of rent, car insurance, and electricity continuing to rise, consumers are looking to save on groceries.

WeightWatchers enters the Rx business for obesity: Its acquisition of medication-based weight loss program Sequence signals an emerging digital health market trend—but consumers must be cautious of telehealth startups' claims.

Cost challenges associated with a new reimbursement policy have spooked community banks—but customers’ love for the service could make it hard to shed.

Veterans Affairs wants to be ‘best place’ for laid-off tech workers: Tech layoffs increased in November, but other sectors have a window of opportunity to scoop them up.

Instacart puts its IPO plans on ice: With Wall Street looking for safe bets and consumers adjusting their shopping habits, there’s little appetite for an Instacart IPO right now.

On today's podcast episode, we discuss the one major hurdle to AI adoption that's not being discussed enough, the smart tech that's missing from your life, how to get X closer to its former glories, if it would be better to have an AI boss than your current human one, a grizzly consequence of global warming, and more. Tune in to the discussion with guest host Bill Fisher, and analysts Evelyn Mitchell-Wolf, Carina Perkins, and Max Willens.

Wall Street banks are expected to face more than $1B in fines over traders’ use of private messaging apps.

While some were skeptical of Temu’s staying power, the app’s low prices and social-first marketing strategy seem to be resonating with consumers. Opening its platform to US sellers could bring competition for Temu at a time when consumer perception is flagging.

Citizens will be able to take out loans up to $30,000. The bank plans to offer even more services at post office locations soon.

Humana, CVS battle for Cano Health: We unpack why the two companies are going after primary care disruptor Cano, and posit which player might have the upper hand.

July spending figures confirm the advertising downturn: The industry is pulling back from pandemic-era highs, and everyone is feeling the impact.

Meta and Google are laying off staff in a curious manner: It’s not en masse, and it’s quieter than usual—but it’s still happening.

On today's podcast episode (part 2), we discuss what the end of cookies means for publishers, what new media business models look like, and who's done the best job of pivoting to digital. "In Other News," we talk about when brands should disclose that they have used AI and whether Spotify's new video learning courses can move the needle. Tune in to the discussion with our director of Briefings Jeremy Goldman and analyst Daniel Konstantinovic.

Google's SGE threatens to cut publisher traffic by up to 60%: The evolution could push the industry toward innovative revenue strategies and partnerships.

While making up just 2% of US market share in their categories, the 97 companies on Bain’s Insurgent Brands 2024 list captured nearly 20% of incremental category growth last year, per the firm.

ChatGPT’s popularity, its impact on businesses, and potential for misuse are pushing governments and regulators to set limits. Where do they even begin?

Returns are a challenge for all retailers, including Amazon: That’s why the retail giant reportedly discussed a deal that would enable its customers to return items at FedEx stores.

UK regulators could force Google to delay Privacy Sandbox: An internal report found that Privacy Sandbox doesn’t hold up to regulatory standards, dealing a blow to its rollout.

Details surrounding the increases are sparse—and Mastercard rebuffed the report as untrue. But the outcry may be overstated

Startups put OpenAI’s Microsoft advantage to the test: OpenAI is becoming one of the US' most valuable startups over its sensational generative AI. Leadership in the space requires skillful monetization.

Streaming services were busy increasing subscription prices. It has become more expensive to avoid advertising, which is swaying more viewers to put up with ads.

Disney looks to emulate Amazon with membership offering: The entertainment giant could also advance its flywheel by introducing in-app commerce for Disney+ and improving cross-selling opportunities.

It takes time to learn a new technology and sometimes, along the way, stumbles happen. As the role of AI in marketing grows, brands must be transparent about how, where, and when they are using the technology. Nearly half (49%) of CMOs in North America plan to focus more on using AI in strategy, creative, and content development for media use over the next 12 months, according to an August 2023 Dentsu survey conducted by B2B International. Here are three missteps brands have made with AI and content creation and what brands can learn from them.

Unified ID 2.0’s rising popularity: Warner Bros. Discovery and Walmart Connect have adopted UID2, heralding a shift in advertising toward privacy-conscious personalization.

Apple’s MacBook mostly dodged holiday weakness a few quarters ago, but shipments fell 40.5% compared to the first three months of 2022. This trend could continue throughout the year.