Ads in AI, the Warner Bros. tug-o-war, Super Bowl ad hangover, nostalgia in marketing, social media's decline, and a 9 year-old pens a spy story. All in today's "food fight."
Here's your quick-hit rundown, grouped by theme, with links to dig deeper.
AI Comes to the Ad Platform: ChatGPT, Meta & Manus
OpenAI officially launches ads in ChatGPT. The company began testing sponsored content on Feb. 9 for free-tier and Go users in the U.S., charging a premium $60 CPM with a $200K minimum buy — paid tiers remain ad-free. (TechCrunch)
Albertsons, Target, and Williams-Sonoma join the ChatGPT ad pilot. The retailers are among the first brands testing conversational ad placements inside ChatGPT alongside earlier participants Adobe, Audible, and HelloFresh. (Digital Commerce 360)
Meta integrates Manus AI into Ads Manager. Following its $2B acquisition, Meta is rolling out Manus as an in-platform AI assistant that automates reporting, audience research, and campaign analysis for advertisers. (MediaPost)
Manus AI agents launch on Telegram, WhatsApp next. Beyond Ads Manager, Meta is pushing Manus into messaging apps — signaling a broader consumer-facing AI agent strategy. (Silicon Republic)
China pushes back on the Meta-Manus deal. While U.S. regulators approved the acquisition, Chinese authorities raised objections, adding geopolitical complexity for brands working within Meta's AI ecosystem. (Global Finance Magazine)
Microsoft Advertising ships February product updates. New features include an enhanced Audience Ads preview hub and general availability of customer acquisition goals for Performance Max campaigns. (Microsoft Advertising Blog)
Media M&A: The Warner Bros. Bidding War
WBD reopens deal talks with Paramount after Netflix grants a 7-day waiver. Warner Bros. Discovery will hear Paramount Skydance's "best and final" offer while its board continues to unanimously recommend the $83B Netflix deal — a shareholder vote is set for March 20. (CNBC)
eMarketer: A Netflix-WBD deal could reshape the ad market. Analysts forecast that combining Netflix and HBO Max would grow Netflix's CTV ad revenue 29% to $3.41B by 2027, pulling dollars primarily from linear TV. (TheWrap)
Super Bowl LX: The Ad Industry's Biggest Night, Still Reverberating
Post-game ad reviews continue to dominate the trade press. Google Gemini's "New Home" spot earned the top grade from Kellogg's annual panel, Levi's "Backstory" (a parade of iconic backsides set to James Brown) was the fan favorite, and Anthropic's anti-ad Claude campaign was called the boldest challenger play. (CBS News)
AI brands outnumbered beer and auto ads combined. Seven AI platform ads aired during the game — more than traditional Super Bowl staples — with ai.com generating 9.1x the engagement of the median spot. (EDO)
Nostalgia: Marketing's Most Powerful (and Underused) Emotion
Reddit identifies nostalgia-driven storytelling as a top brand engagement trend for 2026. The platform highlighted nostalgia, UGC social proof, niche-inspired campaigns, and "unfolding" campaigns as the four key patterns driving results. (Social Media Today)
Kantar data shows nostalgic ads see a +15 point increase in enjoyment and a +13 point higher likelihood of going viral — yet fewer than 3% of ads in Kantar's 250,000+ database use nostalgia at all. (Kantar)
The neuroscience behind nostalgia in marketing. Research from iMotions explores how nostalgic cues trigger emotional engagement at a physiological level, making them a uniquely effective creative tool. (iMotions)
Academic research confirms the effect. A Portland State University honors thesis provides a rigorous literature review supporting nostalgia's measurable impact on brand recall, purchase intent, and emotional connection. (PDX Scholar)
Social Media & Platform Shifts
Social media ad spend declines despite improving ROI. A Keen Decision Systems analysis of $42B in media investment found social's share dropped from 18% to 17% in 2025, even as returns improved — suggesting brands are consolidating around fewer, better-performing platforms. (Portada)
Apple launches a video podcasting push to rival YouTube and Spotify. Apple Podcasts will add integrated video this spring with seamless audio-video switching, offline downloads, and dynamic ad insertion — a major bid to recapture creators as video now accounts for 40%+ of podcast consumption. (CNBC)
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Spotlight: Young Voices in Publishing
Nine-year-old Alexandru Palamariu launches Spy at the Airport. The Singapore-based author began writing his SPY adventure series at age 7; the book is now available on Amazon and other major platforms, with a school launch event scheduled for World Book Day in March. (EIN Presswire | YouTube trailer)
About Mike Bawden
Mike is a marketing and branding professional with over 40 years of experience. Beginning in his family's advertising agency, he later purchased the company and became its CEO.
Today, he serves as Senior Vice President of Marketing and Brand Strategy for TAG, a leading Midwest agency specializing in advertising, marketing, branding, and digital promotion. He has also taught marketing and advertising at area universities and lectured around the world on branding, marketing, and public relations.