August 27, 2025  |  SIGN UP

PRESENTED BY

Michael Bürgi
SENIOR EDITOR, MEDIA BUYING AND PLANNING

I'm not naïve. I understand that generative AI in the last three years has upended pretty much every corner of the world -- marketing and media being one of the bigger corners affected. My inbox is filled predominantly with AI-related pitches, which tells me we're already approaching a jump-the-shark moment in AI's rise to dominance.  

Some parts of the media agency world have dramatically improved thanks to the implementation of generative AI tools  -- research, measurement, production, analysis. But creativity remains, to me, a singularly human innovation that AI in its current form cannot match (and creativity resides as much in media departments as it does anywhere else in an agency). Give it a prompt and it can bring to life the most outrageous ideas, but it's still a human prompt that got it there. I'm almost afraid of the day AI gets there on its own. 

One fundamental element that should underpin every AI application, in the words of Scott Shamberg, CEO of Mile Marker: it needs  "to be supportive of your humans, not scary to your humans." I couldn't have said it better myself. 

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GENERATIVE AI

Is AI undermining agencies’ client relationships or reinforcing agencies’ roles?

This week’s Digiday Podcast features a discussion with Digiday editors Seb Joseph and Michael Bürgi about how generative AI technologies could spur agencies to lose client relationships or push brands to rely on agencies even more for AI access.

MEMBER EXCLUSIVE

Media Buying Briefing: When EQ is just as important as IQ in helping clients grow

Boathouse's appeal is its contrarian streak -- few agencies proudly declare their opposition to the term agency of record, a designation most actually hope to receive from clients.

SPONSORED BY CELTRA

The hidden inefficiencies costing teams time, budget and brand impact

The challenges most marketing teams face might feel familiar, but what looks like a series of small obstacles is really a system-wide issue. The real challenge is the absence of a connected, end-to-end creative supply chain: a system that can support the speed, scale and complexity that modern marketing demands.

MEMBER EXCLUSIVE

Ad Tech Briefing: $26.8 billion still wasted in programmatic despite MFA crackdown

The ANA’s benchmarking report finds that while SPO efforts are yielding efficiency gains, problematic elements persist.

A MESSAGE FROM TATARI

Forward 2025: The new growth playbook

The acquisition landscape is shifting fast — algorithms change, channels plateau and Gen Z’s discovery habits are rewriting the rules.

On Sept. 4 in New York, join Forward 2025 by Tatari, a free, half-day conference built for retail and e-commerce marketers wanting to scale smarter.

Hear from the CEOs of Reddit and AppLovin, and Poppi’s co-founder, plus brand panels that will explore how marketers use convergent TV to drive full-funnel outcomes, from Amazon sales and retail lift to halo effects on search and social.

Wrap up with a rooftop happy hour alongside speakers and peers. Seats are free, but going fast.

RSVP here

MEMBER EXCLUSIVE

Future of TV Briefing: The 2025 glossary

This week’s Future of TV Briefing updates the list of the key terms that can cause confusion when talking about the TV, streaming and digital video industry.

GENERATIVE AI

Media agencies scrutinize paid search adjustments amid zero-click signal confusion

Marketers and media agencies are monitoring CPCs, referral rates and search traffic – and beginning to think bigger in their response to the zero-click challenge.

SPONSORED BY EXPERIAN MARKETING SERVICES

Marketers take a connected campaign approach to exceed benchmarks

To meet current market demands for personalized, high-performing ad campaigns, marketers must implement a new ad campaign approach. A unified campaign strategy begins with a complete understanding of the customer, builds addressable audiences on a strong identity foundation, activates them precisely across channels and measures impact in real-time.