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NBC News’ Today led the way during the final week of May as it was the only morning show to record any positive growth in one of the two measured categories.Today had gains in the advertiser-coveted Adults 25-54 demo the week after Memorial Day. However, in total viewers, Today joined ABC News’ Good Morning America and CBS News’ CBS Mornings in recording declines for the week of May 25.NOTE: All three morning shows were coded as specials on Monday (05/25/26) due to Memorial Day. These telecasts are excluded from the weekly and season averages. ABC News, NBC News, and CBS…
Meta announced on Thursday that it’s introducing a new AI creator assistant on Facebook that will give creators personalized recommendations based on their content style, performance, community, and goals. Creators often have to parse through charts and dashboards to understand their performance, but with the new AI assistant, they can get quick answers to questions like “When should I post?” and “What are people saying in my comments?” Since the AI assistant is conversational, they can ask follow-up questions and dig deeper on a topic, like how their audience has shifted over time. The answers they receive will be based…
Meta has quietly embedded face-recognition technology for its smart glasses into an app downloaded to millions of phones, according to a WIRED analysis of the company’s software.Code discreetly added to Meta’s AI app over multiple updates this year shows that the feature, internally called “NameTag,” identifies people captured by the glasses’ camera and, when activated, alerts the wearer when it recognizes someone.The discovery of NameTag in the live Meta AI app shows that Meta had begun shipping face-recognition code to users’ phones while publicly describing it as something the company was still “thinking through.” In April, Meta said if it…
Samsung TV Plus is stepping into original scripted programming for the first time, and it’s going directly to the creator economy to do it.On Friday, the streaming service will debut the series Unlikely Romances, a four-part romance created by Dhar Mann, the YouTube and social media creator behind Dhar Mann Studios. The series will premiere exclusively on Samsung TV Plus, making it the first creator-led original content deal in the history of the platform.For Samsung TV Plus, an ad-supported streaming television (FAST) platform, the move signals a shift in content strategy. Like other FAST platforms, such as Roku, Tubi, and…
Meta’s Oversight Board, the independent governing body that makes policy recommendations to the tech company, said Thursday that Meta’s account deactivations lack due process, violations are doled out without clarity, and there’s little customer support for appeals. The board, which recently received increased funding to continue its work through 2028, launched the investigation into Meta’s account violations policy earlier this year to review a case involving threats of violence against a journalist. The board agreed that Meta was right to permanently disable the account due to the severity of the threats. However, in looking into the matter, the board found…
Have you ever wanted to wave a magic wand at something and make it yours? Well, now you can, so long as you have enough money in your debit account to pay for it.Cash App, the digital payments service operated by Block, has offered its users the ability to use free physical cards since 2017. Now, anyone with a Cash App card can pay $25 to turn that card into a pearlescent, sparkly magic wand. Anywhere you can use tap-to-pay with your phone or card, you’ll be able to buy something with a tap of the wand instead.The wand is…
Nike’s new film for the FIFA World Cup 2026 upends the conventions of its previous marketing around the tournament. “Rip the Script,” created by Wieden+Kennedy and directed by Dan Streit, is a chaotic, joyful, six-minute anthem that attempts to win over both young, devoted fans and the soccer-curious. It stars soccer icons including Erling Haaland and Cristiano Ronaldo, as well as celebrities like Kim Kardashian and rapper Young Miko. Nike’s ambitious World Cup campaign comes amid a turnaround to restore its brand and reverse sluggish sales. It’s doubling down on soccer and the tournament as key parts of that effort.
Digital wallet app Cash App is launching a new gadget on Thursday, seemingly inspired by the social media trend that involves paying for items in the real world with a tap of a homemade magic wand, which hides a tap-and-pay credit card. Now, there’s a real wand you can buy to take part. The company’s $25 wand is part of its new NFC-powered tag hardware lineup, which Cash App plans to expand to include more form factors in the coming months. The company said that its tags are linked to the Cash App Card and would work at outlets compatible…
For millions of Americans, Guy Fieri’s Diners, Drive-Ins and Dives is a comfort show.With more than 500 episodes produced and aired over nearly two decades, it serves as a Food Network staple that runs in nine-hour blocks, with Fieri himself—the peroxide blond Mayor of Flavortown—a reassuringly familiar and upbeat guide to the nation’s mainstream cuisines.But what if the pleasure Fieri apparently takes in sampling all those burgers and tacos was a deception of sorts? Could it be that each declaration of “That’s money!” or “I’d eat that off a flip-flop!” isn’t totally sincere? Is it possible that the entire loud…
Corporate expense management platform Ramp on Thursday said it has raised $750 million at a valuation of $44 billion, nearly tripling its valuation within just a year as investors scramble to grab a part of the fast-growing startup. The funding round was led by ICONIQ, GIC, and Ontario Teachers’ Pension Plan, and saw investments from a slate of new backers such as Goldman Sachs Alternatives, D.E. Shaw & Co., Morgan Stanley Investment Management, Generation Investment Management, Insight Partners, and BroadLight Capital. Several of the company’s previous investors also participated. Ramp said its annualized revenue is currently more than $1 billion,…
Quantinuum lost nearly $200 million last year, saw revenue drop the first quarter of 2026, and says its technology may never work–yet investors are clamoring to buy the stock.The quantum-computer maker boosted the price and number of shares it will issue on the Nasdaq ahead of its public debut on Thursday, indicating higher-than-anticipated demand.Quantum computers are a nascent technology that promises to solve problems current machines can’t, unlocking commercial advantages in areas from drug discovery to defense. A multitude of startups, as well as tech giants like IBM and Google, are racing to build a quantum computer powerful enough to…
Arnold, the agency known for its comedic work on brands like Progressive, has been named creative agency of record for Discount Tire following a competitive review, adding one of the largest U.S. tire retailers to its roster.The Havas Creative-owned agency will develop and produce campaigns for both Discount Tire and America’s Tire, the retailer’s banner operating in parts of California, Pennsylvania, New Jersey, and New York. The company operates more than 1,275 stores in 40 states across the U.S.COMvergence estimates the total net media spend for Discount Tire at $20 million.The appointment comes as Discount Tire looks to strengthen brand…
Apple on Thursday offered its annual update on the state of the App Store ecosystem ahead of its Worldwide Developers Conference (WWDC) that begins next week. The technology giant said that its App Store facilitated over $1.4 trillion in developer billings and sales in 2025, a figure up from the $1.3 trillion it announced last year around this time. The figure, which includes all business taking place through apps on its platform, is meant to represent how the App Store creates financial opportunities for mobile developers that extend beyond sales from in-app purchases. It also helps to frame Apple’s portion…
Once it’s up and running, riders can activate turn signals that illuminate the end of the handlebar, honk a horn at traffic, tinkle a bell to warn others of their presence, and turn on powerful headlights that, when in Auto mode, illuminate the way in low light.It’s all good stuff, but with more tech comes more that needs to be troubleshot—the right blinker never did function, despite unscrewing the Allen bolt at the end of the handlebar and checking the turn-signal harness plug for damage to the pins, which seemed just fine.One additional safety feature, sold separately, is a Rearview…
As brands rush to test advertising inside ChatGPT, Criteo is gaining traction among retail advertisers by offering easier product-feed integrations, financial incentives, and lower spending thresholds that some buyers say make it a more attractive option than rival platforms such as StackAdapt. Brainlabs is among the agencies using Criteo to buy ads on ChatGPT. Ben Kahan, the agency’s head of programmatic, said Criteo allows retail brands to connect existing product feeds directly into OpenAI’s ad-buying system. This makes Criteo a “compelling offering for retail media clients” platform, he added. The setup gives brands “easy flexibility,” Kahan added. “We don’t have to set…
When I first opened the box the Oura Ring 5 comes in, my first thought was, “Wow, that’s tiny.” My second thought was that this is a smart ring a lot of people have been waiting for. As someone who got quite used to wearing the Oura Ring 4 Ceramic, I was surprised how noticeably smaller and lighter the new Ring 5 is. The Ring 5, which Oura describes as the world’s smallest smart ring, is 40% smaller than its predecessor, measuring 6.09 mm wide compared to the Ring 4’s 7.90 mm, and 2.28 mm thick compared to the Ring…