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The Old Guard Is Being Retired — Literally

DDB, DSAs, and the open web — the retirement notices are piling up. Agencies are merging, ad formats are sunsetting, and every platform is building its own closed loop.

The Old Guard Is Being Retired

1 OpenAI expands ChatGPT ads to logged-out users + launches conversion pixel

ChatGPT ads now show to users who aren’t logged in, significantly expanding available inventory beyond the initial pilot with logged-in Free and Go tier users. OpenAI is also rolling out a conversion tracking pixel that supports six event types: page views, lead creation, order creation, subscriptions, trial starts, and completed registrations.

This closes the attribution loop that was missing from OpenAI’s ad pitch. With a pixel in place, performance marketers can finally measure ChatGPT ads the same way they measure Google or Meta. OpenAI told investors it expects $2.4 billion in ad revenue this year and $11 billion by 2027 — and the pixel is how they plan to prove the ROI that justifies those numbers.

2 Snapchat hits $1B ARR on 25M subscribers + opens creator subscriptions to all eligible

Snapchat+ reached 25 million subscribers, pushing Snap’s direct revenue business to $1 billion in annualized revenue. Separately, Snapchat expanded creator subscriptions to all eligible creators — pricing ranges from $4.99 to $19.99/month with creators receiving approximately 60% of revenue after platform fees.

Snap is building a dual revenue engine: advertising plus subscriptions. The creator subscription expansion is strategic — it gives creators a reason to treat Snapchat as a primary platform rather than an afterthought. At $1B ARR from subscriptions alone, Snap has proven that social platforms can monetize without being entirely dependent on ads.

3 Omnicom retires DDB, FCB, MullenLowe + cuts 4,000 jobs

Post-IPG merger, Omnicom confirmed it will sunset three iconic agency brands by mid-2026: FCB folds into BBDO, while DDB and MullenLowe fold into TBWA. Approximately 4,000 jobs are being cut, bringing the combined organization to roughly 105,000 employees.

This is the most significant agency restructuring in a generation. DDB was founded in 1949; FCB traces its roots to 1873. Their retirement signals that legacy brand equity no longer justifies operational complexity. The new Omnicom is betting that scale, AI integration, and unified data matter more than the storied names on the door.

4 Facebook redesigns feed with immersive grid + algorithm control tools

Facebook launched a new immersive grid layout for the “For You” feed and Search section, plus algorithm refinement tools that let users signal topic preferences — similar to the controls already on Instagram and Threads. The platform is also testing a full-screen photo and video viewer.

Facebook is becoming more Instagram by the month. The grid layout, full-screen viewer, and interest-based algorithm controls are all features that Instagram pioneered. For marketers, this means content strategy across Meta’s apps is converging — what works on Instagram will increasingly work on Facebook, and vice versa.

5 Kana raises $15M seed for agentic marketing AI

Kana emerged from stealth with $15M in seed funding led by Mayfield. The founders previously built Rapt (acquired by Microsoft in 2007) and Krux (acquired by Salesforce for $700M in 2016). Kana’s platform offers “loosely coupled” AI agents for data analysis, audience targeting, campaign management, and media planning.

The pedigree here matters. These are founders who’ve built and sold two category-defining martech companies. Kana’s approach — modular agents that integrate into existing stacks rather than replacing them — addresses the biggest objection enterprises have to AI tools: they don’t want to rip and replace, they want to augment.

6 Amazon sellers boycott ads over payment policy change

Amazon announced that starting April 15, advertising expenses would be deducted from sales proceeds first — a change sellers called a margin killer. After significant backlash, Amazon delayed the policy to August 1, giving advertisers more time to adjust their cash flow planning.

The boycott highlights a growing tension in retail media: as platforms become indispensable advertising channels, their pricing power over sellers increases. Amazon’s ad revenue is now a major profit center, and policy changes that squeeze seller margins risk undermining the marketplace ecosystem that generates that ad spend in the first place.

7 AI in Social Media market projected to hit $10.33B by 2029

A MarketsandMarkets report projects the AI in social media market will grow from $2.2B in 2024 to $10.33B by 2029 at a 36.2% CAGR. The fastest-growing segment is AI-powered influencer marketing. Key players named include Google, Meta, Sprout Social, Sprinklr, and HubSpot.

The 36.2% CAGR tells you where the investment dollars are flowing. AI isn’t an add-on to social media marketing anymore — it’s becoming the infrastructure layer. From automated content creation to predictive audience targeting to real-time campaign optimization, the tools marketers use daily are being rebuilt with AI at the core.

8 LinkedIn adds Saves + Sends KPIs and launches Reserve Ads

LinkedIn introduced two new content performance metrics — Saves and Sends — giving creators and marketers deeper visibility into how content gets redistributed beyond likes and comments. LinkedIn also launched Reserve Ads, a new premium ad placement option for brand advertisers.

Saves and Sends are the metrics that actually matter for B2B content. A like is passive; a save means someone plans to reference it later, and a send means they thought it was worth sharing with a colleague. For B2B marketers, these two metrics are better proxies for purchase intent than any engagement rate. Reserve Ads, meanwhile, signals LinkedIn is going after TV-style guaranteed placements.

9 Amazon Ads + Samsung partner for interactive TV ads

At NewFronts, Amazon Ads announced a partnership with Samsung to bring remote-enabled interactive video ads to Samsung TV Plus, launching July 2026. Additionally, Comcast Advertising’s local and SMB customers can now reach Amazon’s premium streaming audiences through expanded integrations.

Interactive TV ads — where viewers can engage with their remote — have been promised for years. Amazon and Samsung actually shipping it at scale is different. When the largest e-commerce platform partners with one of the largest TV manufacturers, the shoppable TV experience stops being a concept and starts being a line item.

10 Social media ad revenue hit $117.7B in 2025 — up 32.6% YoY

Global social media advertising revenues rose 32.6% year-on-year to $117.7 billion in 2025. The growth was driven by AI-powered ad targeting, short-form video monetization, and the expansion of social commerce across Meta, TikTok, and Snapchat.

A 32.6% growth rate on a $117B base is staggering. Social media advertising is now larger than the entire global TV ad market was just a few years ago. The acceleration is being powered by three converging forces: better AI-driven targeting that improves ROAS, short-form video formats that capture attention, and in-app commerce that shortens the path from discovery to purchase.

Sources

  1. ChatGPT ads expand to logged-out users — Search Engine Land
  2. Snapchat+ tops 25M subscribers, $1B ARR — TechCrunch
  3. Omnicom to cut 4,000 jobs, retire FCB, DDB, MullenLowe — Adweek
  4. Facebook launches feed updates, algorithm control — Social Media Today
  5. Kana emerges from stealth with $15M — TechCrunch
  6. Amazon sellers boycott ads in policy revolt — CNBC
  7. AI in Social Media market surges to $10.33B by 2029 — GlobeNewsWire
  8. LinkedIn 2026 platform updates — HeyOrca
  9. NewFronts 2026 advertising news — Amazon Ads
  10. Social media updates April 2026 — Gain

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