Good day, social leaders! It’s a new week with new updates, including numerous ad options in Pinterest. Let’s take a closer look at these changes and see how they can help streamline your social media strategies.

The latest VMR reviews video ad trends for 1H 2025, building on 2H 2024 insights in the US and Europe. CTV ad views rose sharply—up 31% in Europe and 8% in the US—cementing CTV as the key device for premium video ads.

Instagram has become Meta’s third 3 billion user app, with Meta CEO Mark Zuckerberg announcing that IG is the latest to cross the record-setting user mark.

Why we care. OpenAI wants to monetize free users via ChatGPT ads by 2026, according to reports. It seems that OpenAI is now starting to build that ad-buying infrastructure so brands can run campaigns on ChatGPT. That would give advertisers access to a new platform with massive reach (700 million weekly users as of August).

As customer journeys migrate into LLMs, you need new ways to track behaviour. Here’s how LLM tracking tools approach the problem.

In mid-December, Meta will update its privacy policy to begin selling targeted ads across its family of social media apps based on the data collected from consumer interactions with the company's AI products, including Meta AI

Like thousands of actors, Tilly Norwood is looking for a Hollywood agent. But unlike most young performers aspiring to make it in the film industry, Tilly Norwood is an entirely artificial intelligence-made character. Norwood, dubbed Hollywood’s first “AI actor,” is the product of a company named Xicoia, which bills itself as the world’s first artificial intelligence talent studio.

Launching first in partnership with Etsy and Shopify, the Instant Checkout functionality has the potential to rival Amazon and Google, one expert said.

Meta is getting into the subscription business. In the coming weeks, UK users of Facebook and Instagram will receive a notification giving them the option to pay a monthly subscription fee in return for a “no ads option”. The subscription will cost £2.99 per month on desktop or £3.99 per month on iOS and Android.

Consumer healthcare giant Kenvue has launched a global media and creative agency review, the company confirmed today. It spends an estimated $1.35 billion on measured media annually, according to agency research firm COMvergence. The firm has multiple incumbents including Publicis Media and UM on the media side and FCB and BBDO on the creative side.

Velury will oversee all production capabilities, spanning global content studios, proprietary AI technology platforms, GenAI partnerships and global production hubs, as well as the new content engine, which has been dubbed Leona.

The Federal Trade Commission (FTC) approved a consent order to finalize Omnicom’s multibillion-dollar acquisition of Interpublic Group (IPG) on Friday. New conditions state that Omnicom cannot deny ad dollars to publishers for ideological or political beliefs, unless a client specifically instructs otherwise.

“We intentionally designed Horizon Global to usher in a new chapter of connected intelligence, innovation, and client value,” said Lord in a statement around the joint venture. “Through the BluConverged Platform, and together with our teams and partners, we can now meet the growing demands for performance-based media models and drive enduring growth for the incredible brands we are privileged to represent.”

Stacy DeRiso discusses what sets Initiative apart from its agency competitors and how she’s leading her staff amid a transitory period as Omnicom awaits approval on its plan to buy Interpublic. Taking on a new role as global CEO of a media agency is a career-defining challenge at any time, let alone when the agency is in the process of being acquired.