Digiday Daily

January 13, 2026

More than three years after advertisers bolted in protest of Elon Musk’s turbulent takeover, nearly all of the top 100 advertisers are once again buying ads on the platform now known as X — or so says X.

TOP STORY

Marketing on Platforms

‘More focused on advertising than ever before’: Nearly all of X’s top 100 advertisers returned, ads boss claims

Claim comes as X is embroiled in latest scandal that involves it’s AI chatbot Grok creating sexualized images of women and minors.

OTHER THINGS TO KNOW

While in-content targeting might place an ad for products relevant to the genre a viewer enjoys, weather targeting can add a crucial layer of physical and emotional context. Partner insights from The Weather Company.
The CTV home screen is a valuable marketing moment due to the mindset of viewers when they turn on their TV. But ad success on the home screen demands a different creative approach. Partner insights from TiVo.
The discussion around brand safety and suitability has matured. The industry is now entering a new phase, where brands expect more control, more extensibility into walled gardens and closer accountability to outcomes. Partner insights from Channel Factory.

MEDIA & PLATFORMS

AI Revenue Generation

'Worried about getting caught out': Sir Martin Sorrell on why CMOs are not ready to pay for outcome-based agencies

A steady economy is emerging as the quiet counterweight to AI’s much-hyped reinvention of the agency holdco model.

Brands in Culture

‘Amplified, and used against you’: Nike sat out the viral Maduro moment. That's the point

The meme Nike didn’t touch

PARTNER INSIGHTS FROM QUANTCAST

AI serves as a partner, not a replacement, for Virgin Money

Rather than placing blind trust in AI, trust should be earned through transparency, performance and control. Virgin Money and mFuse found success with autonomous AI, demonstrating its ability to reshape how marketers work, think and grow via earned trust.

AI Revenue Generation

CES 2026: Agentic AI hype vs. media buyers' pragmatism

CES 2026 was all about agentic AI, but Digiday’s Seb Joseph shares why media buyers are approaching the hype around autonomous media buying with pragmatism over urgency.

PARTNER INSIGHTS FROM NEXXEN

It’s time to stop overlooking first-party data from publishers and platforms

First-party data isn’t just an asset for brands; it’s an asset for every stakeholder in the media landscape.

MARKETING

Evolving Agencies