- AI can’t even turn on the lightsLarge language models are currently everyone's solution to everything. The technology's versatility is part of its appeal: the use cases for generative AI seem both huge and endless. But then ... read more
- How Smart Curation Helps SMBs Win In A Fragmented CTV LandscapeCTV has become a powerful full-funnel channel, attracting advertisers of all sizes – and the momentum isn’t slowing. CTV ad spend is projected to rise another 16% this year to $26.6 billion, according to the IAB. ... read more
- Meta is adding more parental controls for teen AI useAn early look at Instagram’s parental controls for teen AI use. After enthusiastically rolling AI chatbots out everywhere, Meta has announced new options for parents to get an idea of ... read more
- Anthropic connects Claude to Microsoft Teams, Outlook, and OneDriveAnthropic is integrating its Claude AI assistant with Microsoft 365 services so it can surface content from Word documents, Teams messages, and Outlook emails in conversations with the chatbot. It’s ... read more
- AT&T is raising home internet prices for the second year in a rowEverything seems to be getting back-to-back price hikes right now, why not your home internet bill too? AT&T is raising prices by $5 a month on all AT&T Internet plans, ... read more
- Prebid, Meet OpenAdsShortly after Trade Desk CEO Jeff Green said the DSP would splinter off from Prebid, he showed up at the Prebid Summit. Then, at ScreenShift, we learn what the TV industry thinks about AI. The ... read more
- Everything You Want to Know About Being (And Working With) Media Buyers At Cynopsis ScreenshiftWhat does it feel like to be a media buyer and planner in 2025? That question launched a fascinating “Ask Me Anything”-style discussion at Cynopsis ScreenShift in New York City on Tuesday. The post Everything ... read more
- Comic: Race To The BottomEnjoy this weekly comic from AdExchanger.com that highlights the digital advertising ecosystem … The post Comic: Race To The Bottom appeared first on AdExchanger. ... read more
- Scrapers Gonna Scrape; No More Fast-Forwarding The Ads, DVR FriendsCloudflare restricts how bots can scrape content; TiVo's customer base stays loyal, even as TiVo leaves the DVR business; and Nestlé announces a stark reduction in headcount. The post Scrapers Gonna Scrape; No More Fast-Forwarding ... read more
- Sora 2 copyright calculations highlight new role for agencies as risk whisperersOpenAI’s launch of Sora 2, its video generation tool and would-be social network for the slop age, was the latest attempt by the generative AI developer to expand the copyright Overton Window. Sora 2 initially ... read more
- Walmart.com’s search results put ads front and center — a playbook Amazon pioneeredThis story was originally published on sister site, Modern Retail. In 2019, Walmart’s e-commerce chief at the time, Marc Lore, drew a line in the sand. “You’ll notice that we don’t sell the No. 1, ... read more
- How Gen Z is rewriting the career playbookThis story was originally published on sister site, WorkLife. The traditional career playbook is being rewritten, one TikTok video at a time. While HR executives have long relied on performance reviews, mentorship programs and communications ... read more
- Future of Marketing Briefing: L’Oréal builds the data backbone to its creator marketingL’Oréal is building a data layer beneath its creator economy push. The cosmetics giant is looking for partners to help make sense of the data from all its creator campaigns, according to two separate sources ... read more
- AI royalties for small and midsize publishers: collective licensing’s next big playAI royalties are finally on the table for small and midsize publishers. Don’t credit OpenAI’s ChatGPT, credit corporate LLMs — enterprise RAG is what’s creating royalty revenue for publishers. RAG — retrieval augmented generation — kicks ... read more
- 5 questions marketers have about Sora and the synthetic social eraAI video tools like OpenAI’s Sora are edging into mainstream culture while marketers watch — some intrigued, others concerned. The promise of near-instant, realistic video may sound like a dream for cash-strapped, content hungry brands. ... read more
- Why world models are the next big thing in AIThis is an excerpt of Sources by Alex Heath, a newsletter about AI and the tech industry, syndicated just for The Verge subscribers once a week. Around the middle of ... read more
- MacBook Pro rumor points to OLED, touchscreen upgrades next yearApple just announced 14-inch MacBook Pro updates that add a new generation M5 processor, faster storage, and a promise of 24-hour battery life, but Bloomberg’s Mark Gurman now reports next ... read more
- Amazon shares a ‘first look’ at new nuclear facilityA rendering of the Cascade Advanced Energy Facility. | Image: X-energy via Amazon Amazon shared some new details about its plans to help deploy more nuclear energy across Washington State, where the company ... read more
- New York bans AI-enabled rent price fixingOn Thursday, New York Gov. Kathy Hochul signed into law legislation banning the use of price-fixing software by landlords to set rental rates. New York is the first state to ... read more
- Pinterest Updated Tool, Features Help Users Reduce 'AI Slop'Continuing its effort to cut down on low-quality "AI slop" spam content, Pinterest has updated its "tuner" tool to help users limit the amount of AI-generated content they see on their Pinterest feeds. ... read more
- Amid signal loss and fragmentation, omnichannel orchestration is driving performanceAriel Deitz, vp, east at Blis Many marketers are curious about omnichannel advertising, but often settle for multichannel, where multiple channels are activated but not orchestrated into a cohesive strategy. In reality, most campaigns are ... read more
- Advertiser Loses Bid For New Hearing In 'Conspiracy' Suit Against Google, AppleUnless the Supreme Court intervenes, the new decision brings an end to a federal lawsuit by California Crane School, which alleged that Google's longstanding arrangement to serve as the default search engine for Apple's Safari ... read more
- Unions are trying to stop Trump from kicking out immigrants over social media postsThe Trump administration’s heightened monitoring of immigrants’ social media accounts seeking grounds to revoke their visas stifles the speech rights of both noncitizens and citizens alike, the Electronic Frontier Foundation ... read more
- Judge orders immigration agents in Chicago to use body camsResidents And Protesters Clash With Federal Agents In Chicago, Illinois. | Getty Images Judge Sara L. Ellis of the Federal District Court for the Northern District of Illinois said during ... read more
- Fujifilm’s bringing instant cameras into the selfie ageThe LiPlay Plus is designed to be held vertically, but can be used to snap photos in a landscape orientation, too. | Image: Fujifilm Fujifilm has announced an update to ... read more
- Pinterest’s ‘tuner’ lets you dial down the amount of AI content — but not entirely
- Web User Petitions SCOTUS To Intervene In Video Privacy BattleCalifornia resident Michael Salazar wants the Supreme Court to revive his claim that Paramount violated the Video Privacy Protection Act by allegedly sending his identifiable video-viewing information to Meta. ... read more
- X To Fight Bots With More User Info In ProfilesX is planning to roll out a new profile display that will include more personal information about the individual user. ... read more
- Apple TV and Peacock announce a discounted $15 monthly subscription bundleStarting next week you can bundle Apple TV and Peacock with a significant discount. | Image: Apple Apple has partnered with NBCUniversal for a new subscription bundle that includes Apple ... read more
- CTV beyond the living room: The marketer’s guide to expanding CTV to every screenTV is one of the fastest-changing ad channels — which says a lot in the context of today’s ad landscape. The way viewers access content and entertainment through TV is shifting at a breakneck speed. ... read more
- Why Meta sees incrementality as the future of measurementDigital advertising has never offered more ways to connect with people — but with that abundance comes complexity. Marketers now have more channels and formats to reach consumers, and people engage with ads in more ... read more
- The Trade Desk’s Auction Evolutions Bring High Drama To The Prebid SummitThe Prebid Summit in New York City on Tuesday offered plenty of new details about The Trade Desk’s OpenAds and PubDesk products that were announced earlier this month. For one thing, OpenAds – TTD’s version ... read more
- Anthropic turns to ‘skills’ to make Claude more useful at workAI agents spent years as a concept and then as an experiment. Now, AI companies are devoting even more time and resources than before to make their agents actually useful ... read more
- Meta is building a smart TV — in VRThis is Lowpass by Janko Roettgers, a newsletter on the ever-evolving intersection of tech and entertainment, syndicated just for The Verge subscribers once a week. Big hero images highlighting select ... read more
- In the age of AI search, a domain is a critical differentiatorDomain extensions, or top-level domains (TLDs), have been around for decades. As the internet continues its rapid expansion, traditional TLDs have been claimed with increasing frequency, making it difficult for businesses to find available, appropriate ... read more
- Theme Park Operator Herschend Taps Crossmedia As Media AORHerschend operates more than 40 leading attractions across North America, including Dollywood Parks & Resorts, Silver Dollar City Parks & Resorts, Wild Adventures Theme Park & Safari Campground, Kennywood, and Adventure Aquarium. ... read more
- OnePlus’ OxygenOS 16 brings Gemini into your Mind SpaceOxygenOS 16 brings with it some wide-ranging upgrades. OnePlus has announced OxygenOS 16, its take on Android 16, with upgrades to its Mind Space AI tool including complete integration with ... read more
- PMG Taps WPP Media's Krichefski For EMEAJohn Krichefski previously served as CEO of GroupM (now WPP Media) EMEA. He is based in London. ... read more
- Google pitches Workspace tools for ‘when, not if’ Microsoft 365 failsGoogle is trying to capitalize on what it calls “frequent and severe” Microsoft 365 outages by offering up services like email, storage, and videoconferencing to businesses in the event of ... read more
- TiVo Rebrand: DVRs No Longer Fit Media Living Room DecorDigital video recording device maker TiVo, which had been the go-to company for consumers in the early days of digital video recording, is leaving this part of their core business after 26 years. ... read more
- Supermarket Chain Hy-Vee Taps Dentsu's iProspect, Includes Bespoke 'RedMedia' NetworkHy-Vee's "RedMedia" retail media ad network is part of the remit, the companies said, citing iProspect's Merkury identity platform as an integral part of the win. ... read more
- How Google Stands In The DOJ’s Ad Tech Antitrust Suit, According To Those Who Tracked The TrialThe remedies phase of the Google antitrust trial concluded last week. And after 11 days in the courtroom, there is a clearer sense of where Judge Leonie Brinkema is focused on, and how that might ... read more
- Casio goes back to the ‘80s for its Back to the Future calculator watchCasio’s new calculator watch features design details inspired by Back to the Future’s DeLorean. | Image: Casio It wasn’t the first watchmaker to release a wristworn calculator, but by making ... read more
- Ugreen’s 8-port Thunderbolt 4 hub is $80 offUgreen’s Revodok Max 208 is on sale for $169.98 If your laptop doesn’t have enough ports, you can fix that issue with Ugreen’s Revodok Max 208, an 8-in-1 Thunderbolt 4 ... read more
- The EV tax credit is gone — now the hard part beginsHello, and welcome to Decoder! This is Jake Kastrenakes, executive editor at The Verge. I’m filling in for Nilay for one Thursday episode while he’s settling back into full-time podcast ... read more
- Uber is turning its app into an AI training groundIn its quest to become the ultimate app for “flexible work,” Uber launched today a new pilot to allow its US drivers and couriers to earn extra money by performing ... read more
- The First Agentic Media Buy, More To Come"It felt like you were watching the first banner ad being served," quipped long-time digital ad native Adam Broitman, referring to AT&T's "You Will" media buy 31 years ago on HotWired.com. ... read more
- Co-Founder Brown Shifts To Non-Executive Director Role At MediasenseAccording to the company, Brown will continue to contribute to the firm's "long-term vision" while management responsibilities will remain under the leadership of CEO Jamie Posnanski. ... read more
- Netflix’s Frankenstein jolts the classic tale with del Toro’s signature flairGuillermo del Toro has been thinking about Mary Shelley's novel for a lifetime. He has described Frankenstein as "the quintessential teenage book," and his famous Bleak House in Los Angeles ... read more
- Spotify says it’s working with labels on ‘responsible’ AI music toolsThe recently-rumored AI partnership between Spotify and the major record labels is now a reality. The streaming service announced today that it’s entering into an agreement with Sony Music Group, ... read more
- The future of being trans on the internetThe internet has long been a source of information and support for transgender people. Now, trans rights and the internet itself are in a moment of crisis. What happens next? ... read more
- Trans women are building their own publishing world, and it’s under threatWhile oceans of ink paint trans women as a monstrous threat or pitiable curiosity, trans women themselves have often remained locked out of the publishing world as both writers and ... read more
- Microsoft wants you to talk to your PC and let AI control itAs Microsoft bids farewell to Windows 10 and gets ready to mark the 40-year milestone of its operating system, it’s looking forward to what’s next for Windows. Microsoft might not ... read more
- DoorDash will use Waymo’s robotaxis for delivery in PhoenixA Waymo autonomous self-driving Jaguar electric vehicle is seen in Tempe, Arizona, on the outskirts of Phoenix, on September 15, 2025. (Photo by CHARLY TRIBALLEAU / AFP) (Photo by CHARLY TRIBALLEAU/AFP via ... read more
- Oppo Find X9 Pro combines 200MP telephoto with 7,500mAh batteryIt’s Android flagship season in China right now, and today is Oppo’s turn. It has revealed the Find X9 and Find X9 Pro, with industry-leading specs for both the cameras ... read more
- Honda wants you to teach its new robot lawnmower
- 7 Ad Tech Veterans Who Have Founded Their Own AI StartupsAs AI sweeps the tech landscape, new startups continue to emerge. Here are seven former ad tech execs' thoughts on best AI practices and starting their own companies. The post 7 Ad Tech Veterans Who ... read more
- The Most Powerful Force In Advertising Is The One We Measure The LeastIt has long been understood that brand is advertising’s most powerful driver of growth. Yet, in a marketplace worth more than one trillion dollars, less than 10% of digital campaigns track brand outcomes. This leaves ... read more
- The DIY and IRL energy of punk rock mutual aidEkko Astral is not a trans band. They may have a trans frontwoman in Jael Holzman. Much of their material may deal with being trans. Plus, they may have grown ... read more
- Country Music Competition Show Puts The Heart In HeartlandA new music-competition show from America's heartland may be the best reality talent contest since "American Idol" ushered in the modern era of such shows in 2002. ... read more
- Steve Jobs will appear on commemorative $1 coin
- Microsoft is reportedly moving its Surface manufacturing out of ChinaAs trade tensions grow between the US and China, Microsoft is reportedly preparing to move the manufacturing of its Surface laptops and tablets out of China. Nikkei reports that Microsoft ... read more
- How The Beauty Brand Milani Bridges Online Beauty Trends And Mass-Market RetailThe 25-year-old cosmetics brand Milani is one of the only independent makeup companies to compete in the mass-market retail category. The company combines the old-school retail world with the new world of digital-native marketing. One ... read more
- Supply In Demand; Like Pigs In SlopSSPs are looking pretty ripe for acquisition; agencies want real man-on-the-street content from actual human men; and AI slop is taking over the internet. The post Supply In Demand; Like Pigs In Slop appeared first ... read more
- In graphic detail: How AI is going to shape influencer marketing next yearFor better or worse, AI is changing the industry, which means even influencer marketing and creators are going to have to adapt. Which is why Digiday has charted what influencer marketing is expected to look ... read more
- The Economist licenses its content to enterprise clients’ private LLMsPublishers are increasingly licensing decades of archived reporting to corporate clients’ private LLMs — a potential path to recurring, usage-based revenue that monetizes evergreen content in the zero-click era. Welcome to LLM deals 2.0. Publishers ... read more
- Media Briefing: Why some publishers are flipping their position on whether to block AI botsThis week’s Media Briefing looks at why some publishers that once blocked all AI bots are reconsidering their stance, as growing traffic from AI platforms is pushing them to weigh potential monetization opportunities against the ... read more
- Brands are betting on creators to make their next hit seriesBranded entertainment seems to be making a comeback. Call it marketing déjà vu. Over the past few weeks, brands like restaurant chain Cava, retail brand Hot Topic and wedding website Zola have each launched episodic ... read more
- Giant Eagle continues its strategic shift away from convenience stores and toward pharmaciesThis story was originally published on Modern Retail. Last month, Pennsylvania-based regional grocery chain Giant Eagle announced a $100 million investment in its products and stores over the next two years. The investment comes alongside ... read more
- How Driverless Cars Will Impact Outdoor AdvertisingIn remarks at today's DPAA conference, Beaubien noted a downside to autonomous vehicles. "What will people do in autonomous cars? Answer: look at their phones, not billboards." ... read more
- Google’s AI video generator is getting better editing and more audioGoogle is making videos created with the AI filmmaking tool Flow even more realistic — and harder to identify as AI-generated at first glance. The company announced Wednesday that users ... read more
- Data Watch: Consumers Trust Few Firms To Protect Their IdentityConsumers have many worries about AI, Ping Identity reports. ... read more
- The MLB app’s best feature is a 30-second delayDon’t let pings spoil the dingers. When my household quit cable four years ago and I lost access to Seattle Mariners games on TV, I started streaming the radio broadcast ... read more
- Here’s where you can preorder the new M5 MacBook Pro and iPad ProThe M5 MacBook Pro, which starts at $1,599, is available for preorder starting today. | Image: Apple Apple recently announced revised 14-inch MacBook Pro and iPad Pro models, each equipped ... read more
- Florida AG Sues Roku Over PrivacyFlorida Attorney General James Uthmeier claims in a new lawsuit that Roku is violating a 2023 state privacy law by allegedly processing childrens' data without parental consent, and adults' and teens' sensitive data without their ... read more
- Meta Partnership With Chip Tech Provider Aims For Global AI EfficiencyMeta has expanded its partnership with semiconductor design company Arm, a competitor of GPU chip-manufacturer Nvidia. The deal shows Meta making a major investment in the global efficiency of its future AI systems. ... read more
- YouTube Rolls Out Content To Support Teens' Mental Health, Well BeingYouTube aims to assist teens with concerns related to mental health on topics including depression, anxiety and ADHD. ... read more
- The iPad just got the chip it needs to be a smart home controller — againThe Apple-designed N1 wireless networking chip brings Thread to the iPad Pro. | Image: Apple Apple’s new M5-powered iPad Pro is the first iPad to officially support the Thread smart ... read more
- Instagram Begins 'PG-13' Content Restrictions For Teen AccountsInstagram has announced its teen accounts will now "be guided by PG-13 movie ratings by default," as the platform begins to implement stricter content settings and parental settings for teen users. ... read more
- TikTok Tackles Attribution’s Blind Spot, Starting With Google AnalyticsThe path a consumer takes from seeing a product to buying it has never been more convoluted. The decades-old model of “last-click attribution,” which gives all the credit for a sale to the final touchpoint, ... read more
- Mobile Gaming, Apps and CTV Are Key to Reaching Today’s Consumers: Dentsu’s Jessie SchwartzfarbAs audiences juggle multiple screens and platforms, advertisers need to rethink how and where they engage, said Jessie Schwartzfarb, executive vice president and head of video investment at Dentsu, in this interview with Beet.TV contributor ... read more
- Amazon’s new name for the Fire TV Stick 4K only adds more confusionSame device, different packaging. | Image: Amazon Following the debut of Amazon’s $39.99 Fire TV Stick 4K Select, the company told The Verge that a name change was coming to ... read more
- ‘New media’ is just right-wing media (From L) Political commentator Rogan O’Handley, aka DC Draino, TikToker Chaya Raichik, US conservative activist Scott Presler, commentator Liz Wheeler and US conservative political commentator Chad Prather carry binders bearing the seal ... read more
- I just reviewed the Xbox Ally, ask me anythingIt’s-a-me, Ally-o. | Photo by Sean Hollister / The Verge Hey! I'm Sean Hollister, and I've been The Verge's unofficial handheld gaming PC reviewer since 2022, when the Steam Deck ... read more
- More Americans Cut Back On Streaming, Car Repairs Amid Economic PressuresMore than a third of U.S. consumers have canceled at least one streaming service in the past six months, Ipsos found. ... read more
- Senate Democrats want to know: was YouTube’s Trump settlement a bribe?Sundar Pichai at Trump’s inauguration, alongside other Big Tech CEOs. A group of Democratic lawmakers are asking questions about YouTube’s $24.5 million settlement with President Donald Trump. In a letter ... read more
- Music Companies To SCOTUS: Cox Liable For Subscribers' Infringement"Cox made a deliberate and egregious decision to elevate its own profits over compliance with the law," Sony Music Entertainment and other companies argue in a brief filed Wednesday with the Supreme Court. ... read more
- Supply-Side Consortium Unveils Agentic Ad Protocol, Invites Ad Industry To JoinMore than 20 companies including PubMatic, Optable, Scope3, Swivel, Classify, Triton Digital, Magnite, and Yahoo have agreed to support the Ad Context Protocol (AdCP), an open technology protocol launched today to standardize how AI agents ... read more
- Yahoo, PubMatic, Others Form Coalition To Launch Agentic Ad ProtocolMore than 20 companies including PubMatic, Optable, Scope3, Swivel, Classify, Triton Digital, Magnite, and Yahoo have agreed to support the Ad Context Protocol (AdCP), an open technology protocol launched today to standardize how AI agents ... read more
- Insta360’s impressive X5 action cam has fallen to a new low price
- Logitech made an Apple Pencil-like stylus for the Vision ProLogitech is launching a digital stylus for Apple Vision Pro that makes it easier to write, draw, and manipulate 3D designs. The Logitech Muse is essentially a pen-shaped Vision Pro ... read more
- Mint Mobile’s prepaid home internet plan is really cheap under very specific circumstancesMinternet is an unforgivable portmanteau. Mint Mobile is trying something a bit less “mobile” with its new prepaid 5G home internet plan that goes for as little as $30 a ... read more
- The Ad Context Protocol Aims To Make Sense Of Agentic Ad DemandThe AI advertising agents will need their own trade group eventually. For now though, a bunch of companies are forming the Ad Context Protocol, or AdCP. The consortium of ad tech and AI ad software ... read more
- Deloitte: Shoppers Will Cut Holiday Spending By 10%Consumers have the gloomiest view of the economy since 1997 and are looking for new ways to find value. ... read more
- Real Tilly Norwood Featured In New Mint Mobile CampaignAnd she's an actual Mint Mobile customer, made of flesh and blood, and not AI generated like the "actress" who has made headlines in recent weeks. ... read more
- WTF: Ad Context Protocol?Ad tech has a new acronym, dubbed “AdCP,” and it’s one backed by some of the industry’s OGs. The cynical might quip, “That’s just what we need…” But more forward-thinking readers will appreciate it as ... read more
- Threads now has group chatsThe ability to add users to group chats via shared links is coming in a future update. Meta is adding group chats to Threads, allowing users to message multiple friends ... read more
- Kobo’s new e-reader remote lets you turn the page with the press of a buttonKobo announced an official remote control for its e-readers, allowing you to turn the page easily even when you don’t have the e-reader to hand. While it won’t quite allow ... read more
- Accidental AI: How Nano Banana Gained Traction With No Help From GoogleNano Banana came to Google Search and NotebookLM this week, with Photos the next step. One analyst believes Google's AI image-editing model spread virally based on word of mouth, with no involvement from Google. Here's ... read more
- Honor’s Robot Phone concept features a fold-out camera armHave you ever wanted a DJI Osmo Pocket built into your phone? Honor has announced what it’s calling the “Robot Phone,” a concept device with an AI-enabled, gimbal-mounted camera that ... read more