Today’s Insights

• Perplexity beats Google to in-app, AI shopping

• Threads ads start 2025

• Google tests search Shopping Assistant

• TikTok debuts AI video creative suite

• YouTube enables Shorts-only ad campaigns

Feature

🛍️ Perplexity launches in-app shopping

Perplexity enables users to find and buy products within their Search Engine.

Perplexity is offering product recommendations from companies including Shopify, Amazon & Best Buy. Shopify founder, Tobi Lutke as well as Jeff Bezos, are investors in the company whose latest valuation was in the region of $3bn.

Perplexity has an integrated, one-click checkout experience (‘Buy with Pro’) and is currently offering free shipping.

Brands are invited to sign up for the Perplexity Merchant Program which gives an increased chance of being a "recommended product".

Perplexity has been able to move faster than Google, Microsoft and OpenAI in launching e-commerce via AI chat and the company confirmed they will be expanding to new markets after the initial US launch.

Perplexity

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Google & Meta

📢 Report: Meta will launch ads on Threads in early 2025

Meta will allow certain advertisers to publish ads in Threads starting in January, The Information reports.

The Information

📈 Threads gains 15 million new sign-ups in November

Instagram Chief, Adam Mosseri says the app maintained 1M+ daily signups for three months. The platform is seeing steady growth as competition with Bluesky and X heats up.

Threads

💡 Google Chrome will display Merchant Center promotions directly in the address bar

Google has begun to notify select advertisers of the new feature.

Search Engine Roundtable

📱 Google is live testing ads in AI Overviews

Users are beginning to see ads integrated within AI Overviews on U.S. mobile search results. No official announcement from Google yet.

Search Engine Land

🤖 Google tests Shopping Assistant for e-commerce searches

An organic sitelink which reads “Get help from Google’s sales assistant,” has been seen on Google search for some brands. It opens a chat window where users can ask product-related questions.

Search Engine Roundtable

⚖️ Bloomberg: DOJ pushes for Google to sell Chrome browser in antitrust case

If a judge agrees to a Justice Department proposal to sell the Chrome browser, it could be worth as much as $20 billion, and impact Google’s search ad business.

Bloomberg

More Headlines

📢 Perplexity AI begins testing ads on its platform in the U.S.

Starting this week, ads will be displayed as “sponsored follow-up questions” next to answer content. These ads will feature AI-generated responses without input from advertisers.

Perplexity

🎶 TikTok launches an AI-powered video-generation tool

Brands input product details and TikTok’s Symphony Creative Studio will create videos. Brands can also include digital avatars in their scripts and create multilingual video content. The feature is available to all advertisers.

TikTok

🔗 TikTok tests product link integration from affiliate partners

Creators can add links from Amazon, Walmart, Target, and others directly into video posts. These links appear in the comments section, allowing creators to earn commissions when followers make purchases through them.

Lindsey Gamble

📺 YouTube enables brands to run ads exclusively on the Shorts feed

The platform also adds stickers on Shorts ads and animated image ads for Demand Gen campaigns.

Google

🚫 Amazon shuts down its free ad-supported streaming service ‘Freevee’

The platform will integrate Freevee’s content into Prime Video. Freevee’s shows will still be available to non-Prime subscribers under a “Watch for Free” label within Prime Video at no charge.

Variety