tech

Rani Molla6/17/25

Ad firms Omnicom, Interpublic, and WPP fall after reports of pharma ad crackdown and Meta’s AI-generated ads

Major ad agencies Omnicom, Interpublic, Publicis, and WPP are each trading down about 2% amid news that the Trump administration plans to crack down on pharma ads, as well as news of AI ad tech updates from Meta and other tech companies.

Meta today said it’s testing a tool that would let advertisers quickly turn still images into full video ads, as part of its continued push into AI ad tech. It’s one of many Big Tech companies, including Amazon and TikTok, upending ad creation.

Meanwhile, Bloomberg reports that Health and Human Services Secretary Robert F. Kennedy Jr. could disrupt the $10 billion in annual advertising revenue that pharmaceutical companies spend by making it more difficult for them to advertise their products. The pharmaceutical industry is one of the biggest ad agency customers in the US, with IPG making a whopping 29% of its revenue from health ads, according to Barclays.

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OpenAI shares how it will charge for ChatGPT ads

Last week, OpenAI announced that ads were going to be rolling out to ChatGPT in the coming weeks.

Now we have more details about what OpenAI is telling advertisers. According to a report from The Information, OpenAI has reached out to “dozens” of advertisers, and will charge based on ad views.

Advertisers are still waiting for further details, but the company is asking for less than $1 million each in ad spending, while the company tests out the new system according to the report.

Ads are supposed to begin in February, and will only appear for free ChatGPT, and ChatGPT Go users.

OpenAI Lines Up Advertisers, Reveals Key Details Ahead of Ads Launch

OpenAI Lines Up Advertisers, Reveals Key Details Ahead of Ads Launch

Advertisers are still waiting for further details, but the company is asking for less than $1 million each in ad spending, while the company tests out the new system according to the report.

Ads are supposed to begin in February, and will only appear for free ChatGPT, and ChatGPT Go users.

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Apple is reportedly working on a wearable AI pin

Move over OpenAI, Apple is reportedly also developing a mysterious AI-powered wearable device: a pin that looks like a “thin, flat, circular disc with an aluminum-and-glass shell.”

The Information reports that the device is the size of an Apple AirTag and has two cameras, a speaker, three microphones, and wireless charging. It could be available by early 2027.

Apple, which has lagged its peers in AI and recently teamed up with Google to support its upcoming Siri revamp, is hoping to keep up with ChatGPT and Google, which, like Apple, has an AI smartphone. Meta and Google are both also pushing into smart AI glasses.

It’s not to be mistaken with OpenAI’s secretive wearable AI device, which is being made in conjunction with former Apple designer Jony Ive and expected to debut in late 2026. The latest rumors suggest the unnamed device, meant to eventually compete with smartphones, might be earbuds.

Apple Developing AI Wearable Pin

Apple Developing AI Wearable Pin

Apple, which has lagged its peers in AI and recently teamed up with Google to support its upcoming Siri revamp, is hoping to keep up with ChatGPT and Google, which, like Apple, has an AI smartphone. Meta and Google are both also pushing into smart AI glasses.

It’s not to be mistaken with OpenAI’s secretive wearable AI device, which is being made in conjunction with former Apple designer Jony Ive and expected to debut in late 2026. The latest rumors suggest the unnamed device, meant to eventually compete with smartphones, might be earbuds.

As public pushback against data centers grows, AI companies promise they’ll be good neighbors

Communities concerned with energy prices, pollution, and water usage are starting to push back on Big Tech’s AI data center building spree. The companies are trying to assure the public that they will pay their way.

Protest Against Michigan Data Center

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Morgan Stanley expects Tesla to have 1,000 Robotaxis by the end of 2026. Musk had predicted 1,500 by the end of 2025

Ahead of Tesla’s earnings report next week, Morgan Stanley has released a note estimating that the company will scale its Robotaxi fleet much more slowly than CEO Elon Musk has said. The firm thinks the automaker will have 1,000 vehicles in its Robotaxi service by the end of 2026 — 500 fewer than Musk estimated a few months ago Tesla would have by the end of 2025.

More key to Tesla’s success, however, will be removing the safety monitors from those rides, which Morgan Stanley says will be a “precursor to personal unsupervised FSD [Full Self-Driving] rollout.” Musk, of course, had also promised to remove safety drivers in Austin by the end of 2025, but driverless rides are still in the testing stage.

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Meta says it’s delivered new AI models internally this month and they’re “very good”

Meta’s last AI model release, Llama 4, was marred by delays and accusations of rigged benchmarks, but the company says the latest models built by its Superintelligence Labs team look promising. CTO Andrew Bosworth told reporters at the World Economic Forum that the team delivered new models internally in January and they’re “very good.”

Bosworth didn’t specify what the models are, though The Wall Street Journal has reported that Meta is working on a large language model and an AI image and video model code-named Avocado and Mango, respectively.

Exclusive: Meta's new AI team delivered first key models internally this month, CTO says

Exclusive: Meta's new AI team delivered first key models internally this month, CTO says

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