Happy Monday! Hope you had a great weekend.
Last week was a big one in the AI space, with a slew of announcements coming out of OpenAI's Dev Day. Not to be outdone, X, Amazon and Samsung touted their own developments in this space. But we start this week's #DigitalDigest with a slew of pieces on the growing trend around social shopping and - on the flip side - social lead generation.
1. Social Shopping
We've talked about the potential for social commerce for years, and a slew of recent stories show the momentum building in this space - led by TikTok and Instagram. (Insider Intelligence, Insider Intelligence, Social Media Today, Wall Street Journal)
- Why it matters: Data - and consumer trends - continue to show that after years of trying, social shopping may actually be gaining traction now, which is why we're seeing companies like TikTok and Meta continuing to test-drive ways to make this behavior stick with consumers.
2. New lead generation features on Facebook, Instagram
Meta announced five new lead generation features for Facebook and Instagram including ads that click to open a WhatsApp chat, allowing users to share their information with multiple related businesses at once, the ability for businesses to call leads through Facebook, campaign automation and integration with Hubspot. (Search Engine Land, Marketing Dive)
- Why it matters: While much of the hype remains focused on TikTok's moves in this space, Meta's massive user base and ecosystem of platforms means it remains a critical piece of the puzzle, especially for small businesses - at whom many of these features are aimed.
- Also: Meta also announced an in-app shopping partnership with Amazon to buy without leaving the Facebook or Instagram apps. (TechCrunch)
3 . OpenAI announces new models and features at Dev Day
OpenAI held its "OpenAI Dev Day" last Monday, with a slew of announcements including:
- Copyright Shield, a move similar to that of other companies including Google, IBM, Microsoft, Adobe and others, which will provide indemnity from copyright claims for users of its enterprise and API products. (TechCrunch, Forbes)
- GPT-4 Turbo, its latest-generation model for developers with an updated knowledge cut-off of April 2023 (when ChatGPT launched its cut-off was late 2021), the ability to intake prompts as long as an entire book and cheaper access for devs. (OpenAI)
- Perhaps most consequentially: GPTs, custom versions of ChatGPT that users can create and train for a specific purpose, along with a GPT Store that will allow users to browse for GPTs relevant to them. (OpenAI, One Useful Thing)
- Why it matters: GPTs are a step towards AI "agents" that are able to carry out complex tasks for us. Even now they're replete with potential: Want a chatbot that can operate as a math tutor? How about to teach you the rules of a game? Or to teach you about US financial regulations? The possibilities are infinite, and enterprise users will even be able to create private, secure GPTs for their own internal use.
- Last week was full of other companies also announcing their own AI projects. X announced the launch of Grok, its ChatGPT rival featuring "a bit of wit and a rebellious streak." Meanwhile, Amazon is training its own "Olympus" AI chatbot and Samsung is incorporating AI into its new Galaxy S23 phones. (X.ai, Social Media Today, Reuters, Tom's Guide)
- How AI fake nudes ruin teenagers’ lives (Washington Post)
- Tech platforms are rolling out new AI protections as the US election year looms, with Microsoft announcing protections for politicians against deepfakes and Meta announcing it will label political ads using AI-generated imagery (The Verge, ABC News, Wall Street Journal)
4. YouTube blocks the blockers
YouTube has launched a global effort to crack down on ad blockers, blocking videos for people using these popular tools. (The Verge, Insider Intelligence)
- Why it matters: This campaign comes as YouTube continues to roll out more intrusive ad types (like 30-second unskippable ads) and has raised prices for its ad-free tiers. As Insider Intelligence noted in the piece above, not everyone is thrilled with these developments.
5. The demise of Twitter
Twitter was once a vital news platform for major conflicts. No longer. (Politico)
- Why it matters: There's little that's new here, but Politico's piece outlines in stark detail the systematic changes that have led to the pollution of the X (Twitter) landscape over the last year. This line in particular stands out: "Musk is harming American security by gift-wrapping X and handing it over to terrorists and hostile governments who are running information operations against democratic ones."
On that happy note, have a great week!
Content Creator with a Heart for Brands that Provide Real Value
1 年Thank you so much Sir Dave for a very 8nsightful article.
Creative business builder with the ability to turn ideas into reality.
1 年The growth in North American social commerce has been interesting. As more social platforms venture into retail I wonder how actual retailers will look at these ad platforms of today when they may become the competitors of tomorrow?