More than half (53%) of US physicians plan to significantly increase AI use over the next year, per a DHC Group and Sermo study in November. As physicians increasingly rely on AI for support, the information they encounter will be shaped by the quality of the science-based content that AI systems will surface.

Canadian consumers are heading into the holidays with tight budgets, as surveys show a rising share cutting back or shifting spending toward essentials. This pullback, combined with flat retail sales and broader economic worries, suggests retailers shouldn't expect a late-season rebound to bail out weak demand. To lure what spending does occur, retailers will need to double down on value messaging and use loyalty programs to win over highly price-sensitive consumers.

For social platforms, AI hype is colliding with user fatigue and rising regulations. In the US, they face stalled engagement and tougher rules as people demand more control and more human experiences.

Streaming CPMs are flattening as swelling CTV inventory reshapes pricing power and forces advertisers to rethink how they balance cost, ad clutter, and reach.

Google is quietly exploring how Gemini could support advertising in 2026, per Adweek, even as the company publicly denies any such plans. Agencies say Google has framed potential Gemini ads as high-intent, conversational opportunities for ecommerce brands—signals emerging alongside rapid user growth. Gemini’s global MAUs have climbed roughly 30% since August, and its US footprint is projected to reach 85.7 million users by 2029. If prompt-level signals become targetable, conversational AI could function as a new, more precise form of intent advertising.

2026 is set to be another strong year for the global travel industry. A record 5.2 billion people are expected to travel by air, up 4.4% YoY, according to the IATA. While global demand remains robust, the US industry is contending with several headwinds, including weakening interest in domestic travel—from both US consumers as well as international visitors—which is pressuring budget carriers and pushing prices upward as airlines target premium customers. With the softening jobs market and growing uncertainty contributing to consumers’ “bad vibes” about the economy and their personal finances, US demand for travel is likely to continue to be uneven in 2026.

Yelp’s newest Most Loved Brands list identifies which national chains consumers returned to most in a year defined by cautious, value-sensitive spending. Unlike perception-based rankings, Yelp’s loyalty score draws from behavioral signals—repeat visits to brand pages, review volume, sentiment, and photo activity—revealing what people actually do, not just what they say. Dave’s Hot Chicken leads the list on the strength of customizable experiences and overwhelmingly positive ratings, while legacy chains, nostalgia-driven brands, and Zillennial favorites succeed for distinct reasons. For marketers, the findings echo broader path-to-purchase trends: consumers increasingly depend on reviews, consistency, and social proof to validate where they spend.

Despite multiple pivots and significant investments, Amazon continues to struggle in a sector that represents one of the largest consumer spending categories. "Amazon dominates ecommerce with nearly 40% market share, but grocery remains the category it just can't crack," said our analyst Suzy Davidkhanian on a recent episode of “Behind the Numbers.”

PepsiCo has reached an agreement with activist investor Elliott Investment Management to cut its US SKU count by 20%, streamline its workforce, and reinvest savings into lowering prices on core brands—moves that largely reinforce strategies already underway. The company expects these price reductions to lift volumes while continuing to expand its growing lineup of “better for you” products, including reformulated snacks, sugar-free beverages, and prebiotic offerings. PepsiCo projects 2% to 4% organic revenue growth next year, but regaining momentum will take time as price-sensitive shoppers increasingly turn to lower-cost private-label alternatives.

Podcast TV attention metrics (AUs) held steady from Q3 2024 to Q3 2025 even as streaming audio AUs declined, per our industry KPI data provided by Adelaide. Podcasts held a 6 to 8 point advantage over streaming audio in every quarter, fluctuating slightly between 47.4 and 50.1 AUs. Streaming audio AUs dipped from 44.1 to 41.8, a 5.2% YoY decline. Podcasts offer a unique combination of engagement and competitive CPMs. Use the format to capitalize on high-attention placements, trust in ads and host recommendations, and mid-funnel potential.

Structure Therapeutics’ experimental obesity pill led to an average 12.1% weight loss after 36 weeks on a 120 mg daily dose, which stacks up well against competitors. Newcomers to the weight loss drug market still face key disadvantages, even with strong trial results. For smaller weight loss drug developers that may not have the risk appetite or resources to compete with larger players, the best way to cash in on a market dominated by two giants may be to pursue a partnership or acquisition.

More than half (54%) of US adults have heard about TrumpRx, but only 20% know what the administration’s planned website for direct-to-consumer drugs is about, per a recent BuzzRx report. Pharma companies see TrumpRx as a new way to reach consumers directly, but public awareness of the upcoming platform remains low.

Approved vaccines for infants to protect against a serious respiratory disease called RSV are getting new scrutiny from federal health agency officials, according to Reuters. Heightened federal scrutiny adds uncertainty for RSV manufacturers at a time when the childhood vaccine environment is already polarized.

Australia has enacted the world’s first nationwide ban on social-media accounts for anyone under 16, forcing platforms like TikTok, Instagram, YouTube, and Snapchat to remove underage users or face major penalties. Policymakers and researchers will study the effects on mental health, offline behavior, and migration to unregulated platforms—insights that could influence US policy, where similar proposals are already gaining traction. For advertisers, the implications are significant: removing millions of teen users would constrict future reach curves, shift youth attention toward gaming-adjacent spaces, raise competition for compliant inventory, and complicate early brand-building. Australia’s experiment may foreshadow US market disruption.

Mobile advertising remains concentrated around a few dominant platforms, but challengers are gaining ground, per AppsFlyer’s Performance Index. Worldwide, Google Ads and Apple Ads remain No. 1 and No. 2, respectively, but AppLovin, Mintegral, Meta Ads, and TikTok for Business are climbing the rankings. As industries push further into mobile ads, competition is intensifying around creative efficiency, privacy-safe measurement, and cross-platform diversification. Marketers should prioritize mobile-first creative, test emerging networks early, and diversify across iOS and Android to hedge volatility.

Pinterest is piloting a new shoppable recipe format with Walmart’s help. Select recipes now feature a “Shop Ingredients” button that lets users add ingredients directly to their Walmart carts. The pilot fits squarely with Pinterest’s broader goal to make every pin on its platform shoppable, a strategy designed to fully monetize its influence over product discovery and shopping trends. It also fits with Walmart's aim to establish a presence on as many shopping channels as possible, be it social commerce or ChatGPT.

Google Chrome will now autofill users’ loyalty card numbers, travel details, and vehicle information housed in Google Wallet, per a company blog post. Maximizing its utility as a shopping interface is critical as Google Chrome’s browser dominance risks getting eroded by AI tools and browsers like Perplexity’s Comet. If volumes divert to new sources, like the PayPal-linked Comet, Google shoppers could maintain their loyalty in the browser by convenience the tools offer them during their checkout experiences.

Afterpay partnered with a slate of new merchants to increase flexible financing options for consumers ahead of the holidays, per a press release. New partners include Thursday Boots, Diesel, and SP5DER Worldwide. Block is betting on its ecosystem effect raising the value of all of its products. However, major partnerships are still needed to rocket a BNPL product to high use, like Klarna’s integrations with Walmart.

Consumers expect flexible financing options during their shopping journey, especially for big-ticket items, per a report from Synchrony’s Major Purchase Study. Advertising financing is essential, but making it easy for consumers to access is even more important. Simplifying checkout through one-click buy buttons or QR code scans in-store can streamline users’ experience for high pressure purchases and drive loyalty to those retailers for making the process painless.

Sell-side platform PubMatic and connected TV (CTV) ad company BrightLine announced a partnership that will bring addressable and interactive CTV ad formats to PubMatic’s programmatic platform. As interactivity becomes a critical differentiator in a crowded CTV ad landscape, marketers can use PubMatic and BrightLine’s partnership to more easily deploy interactive CTV ad formats across major publishers.

Uber is offering customer data to marketers to enhance ad targeting and placement capabilities. The data is available through Uber Intelligence, its new insights platform powered by LiveRamp. Advertisers can get information on how people “move, dine, travel, and order” to build a better understanding of customers’ behavior patterns, the company said in a blog post. Marketers should experiment with Uber Intelligence’s insights to create bespoke ad strategies that segment audiences, identify relevant customers, and personalize targeting.

77% of worldwide consumers are comfortable with AI resolving a question or issue, according to an August survey from CSG.

Attention metrics (AUs) in the social media video landscape are gradually fragmenting as audiences shift to platforms with interest-driven feeds, per our industry KPI data provided by Adelaide. Consumer attention fragmenting across platforms means that advertisers who are already struggling to reach target audiences on social media are facing an uphill battle. Focusing on interest-driven platforms like Reddit and Pinterest as they gain AUs can help drive stronger results, while maintaining investment in leaders like YouTube will remain essential.

Meta is restructuring its European ad system under pressure from the Digital Markets Act (DMA), setting up one of the most consequential shifts to its ad targeting model in a decade, per The Economic Times. Users can opt to allow full data sharing for personalized ads or limit data sharing and receive a lighter, less-tailored ad experience. Brands reliant on Meta or those that have deep EU campaigns should diversify targeting inputs, invest in creative that performs without deep personalization, and build measurement strategies resilient to thinner data signals.