Wayve CEO on London Self-Driving Cars Trial With Uber
Wayve Technologies CEO & Co-Founder Alex Kendall discusses the company's plans to remain "asset light" and adaptable for all car manufacturers. This comes after the startup's announcement earlier this week that they will be partnering with Uber to trial fully autonomous vehicles in London. The two companies have been working together for some time, with Uber owning a strategic investment in the London-based startup. Kendall speaks to Bloomberg's Tom Mackenzie at sidelines of Founders Forum in Oxfordshire, UK. (Source: Bloomberg)
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Yahoo
23 minutes ago
- Yahoo
Influencer Marketing Gains Ground as Global Ad Budgets Tighten
(Bloomberg) -- Ashton Hall's morning routine involves dunking his head in iced Saratoga Spring Water. For the company that sells the bottled water — Hall's brand of choice for drinking, brushing his teeth and submerging himself — that's fantastic news. Shuttered NY College Has Alumni Fighting Over Its Future Trump's Military Parade Has Washington Bracing for Tanks and Weaponry NYC Renters Brace for Price Hikes After Broker-Fee Ban Do World's Fairs Still Matter? As Part of a $45 Billion Push, ICE Prepares for a Vast Expansion of Detention Space 'We're so thankful to this incredible fitness influencer called Ashton Hall,' Saratoga-owner Primo Brands Corp.'s Chief Executive Officer Robbert Rietbroek said on an earnings call after Hall's morning routine video went viral. 'He really helped put our brand on the map.' Primo Brands, which wasn't affiliated with Hall when he made his video, is among the increasing number of companies benefiting from influencer co-signs. Handbag-maker Coach, once synonymous with mall discounts, has become a Gen-Z status symbol and saw sales soar thanks to TikTok influencers expanding their collection of purses adorned with little cherry or pretzel charms. With economic turmoil squeezing ad budgets, content creators are seen as better value than other marketing areas. 'While it's true we are seeing brands begin to pull back in marketing expenditure as a whole, the creator economy is surging,' said Kenny Gold, head of social, content and influencer at Deloitte Digital. The global influencer marketing industry is projected to grow 36% between 2024 and 2025 to reach $33 billion, Statista data shows. 'This year will be the first year that advertising revenue on user generated content and platforms actually outpaces the ad revenue on professionally produced content,' said Kate Scott-Dawkins, WPP Media's global president of business intelligence. 'That's a big deal.' Unilever Plc's recently appointed CEO, Fernando Fernandez, said he will hire 20 times more influencers as part of a social-first marketing strategy because consumers are 'suspicious' of corporate branding. The owner of Dove soap and Hellmann's mayonnaise plans to dedicate as much as 50% of its ad budget to social media, up from 30% before. While fashion, beauty and accessories lead the way in employing influencer marketing, the strategy is gaining ground among consumer goods companies amid economic turbulence who are increasingly relying on influencers to position their products as premium, said Ruben Schreurs, CEO of media analytics firm Ebiquity Plc. With the expense of TV advertising, brands are starting to look at maximizing their reach more effectively, according to Alex Burgess, global president of The Goat Agency, which counts Unilever as one of its biggest clients. Globally, brands increased investment in influencer partnerships by 49% in 2024 and content creators topped social media marketing budgets, taking up a quarter of the total annual spending on average, according to Deloitte research. Influencer marketing spending is expected 'to continue to accelerate,' said Scott Morris, chief marketing officer of social media management company Sprout Social Inc. Within the last year, Publicis Groupe SA bought Influential, the largest influencer marketing company in the world by revenue, and BR Media Group, a leader in Latin America that works with 80% of the region's biggest influencers. Publicis' backing of players like Influential is a 'strong indicator' that influencer marketing is no longer a niche, said Oliver Lewis, CEO of The Fifth, an influencer marketing agency recently acquired by digital media company Brave Bison Plc. 'They have to be very acquisitive because if they don't acquire these capabilities across their network, they'll be left behind,' Ebiquity's Schreurs said. Companies often favor smaller, independent, topic-specific influencer agencies that can connect them to creators with a strong reach and a defined audience. Attracting Gen Z The appeal is the direct line to consumers. 'It works because it feels personal, relevant and real,' Sprout Social's Morris said. 'These are qualities that traditional advertising often lacks.' 'People trust people more than they trust brands,' said Rahul Titus, global head of influence at WPP-owned Ogilvy. 'Authenticity sells.' This resonates with Gen Z digital natives in particular, a cohort with $450 billion in global spending power. Micro-influencers – creators with 10,000 to 100,000 followers – 'exert great influence' on the 'the savvy and cynical' Gen Z, Jay Sinha, an associate professor of marketing at Temple University's Fox School of Business, wrote in a paper. As social commerce — where people buy and sell on social media platforms like TikTok Shop — becomes mainstream, brands want to create content with an 'easy onward journey to purchase,' said Jessica Tamsedge, EMEA CEO of Dentsu Group Inc.'s influence division. That flexibility, affordability — they're cheaper than celebrities — and direct impact, compared with the uncertain results of shooting a TV ad or setting up billboards, is appealing. 'Unlike more traditional channels, we're not weighed down by long lead times or heavy production guardrails,' said Nick Rogers, founder of influencer marketing agency The Cast, adding that campaign messaging can be adjusted, influencers recast and creative direction altered very quickly. That immediate feedback loop comes with a key risk: 'When it goes wrong, because it's social, it goes wrong very quickly,' Ogilvy's Titus said. German sportswear maker Adidas AG was forced to publicly cut ties with Kanye West in 2022, highlighting the risk of trusting a public figure with unlimited access to a phone. One way around that may be the emergence of AI-generated influencers, some of which have large followings on Instagram, TikTok or OnlyFans. Meta Platforms Inc. plans to fully automate ad creation with AI, including imagery, video, text and audience targeting, the Wall Street Journal reported. 'It's going to be very interesting to see how much value there is in being human versus an AI when it comes to engaging audiences,' Ebiquity's Schreurs said, adding that influencers' livelihood may be at risk from the shift. When it comes to concerns over brand safety, clients could look more favorably on an AI-generated influencer where everything can be controlled and there are no skeletons in the closet, WPP Media's Scott-Dawkins said. For now, the growth runway remains clear for influencer marketing. 'What used to be seen as a bolt-on is now right at the center,' The Fifth's Lewis said. American Mid: Hampton Inn's Good-Enough Formula for World Domination The Spying Scandal Rocking the World of HR Software New Grads Join Worst Entry-Level Job Market in Years As Companies Abandon Climate Pledges, Is There a Silver Lining? US Tariffs Threaten to Derail Vietnam's Historic Industrial Boom ©2025 Bloomberg L.P. Sign in to access your portfolio
Yahoo
23 minutes ago
- Yahoo
US Steel Sale to Nippon Steel Poised to Close After Trump Deal
(Bloomberg) -- Nippon Steel Corp. won conditional US approval for its $14.1 billion purchase of United States Steel Corp., capping a lengthy saga in a tie-up that will create one of the world's largest steel companies. Shuttered NY College Has Alumni Fighting Over Its Future Trump's Military Parade Has Washington Bracing for Tanks and Weaponry NYC Renters Brace for Price Hikes After Broker-Fee Ban Do World's Fairs Still Matter? As Part of a $45 Billion Push, ICE Prepares for a Vast Expansion of Detention Space In a release Friday, the companies said they've committed to a national security agreement proposed by the Trump administration, which earlier cleared the deal subject to those terms. As part of the $55-per-share deal, the Japanese company will invest an additional $11 billion by 2028, including an initial commitment in a greenfield project that would be completed after 2028. Nippon had previously raised its pledged additional investment in an effort to win President Donald Trump's approval. Nippon Steel will also spend an extra $3 billion after 2028 for a new steel mill, according to people familiar with the matter. That would push the total additional investment — on top of the purchase price — to $14 billion. Earlier Friday, Trump formally opened the door to approving the sale of US Steel by submitting the agreement to the companies and amending former President Joe Biden's move to block the agreement in an executive order. The president's action cleared the sale so long as the companies comply with the government's terms. 'President Trump promised to protect American Steel and American Jobs — and he has delivered on that promise,' White House spokesman Kush Desai said in a written statement. 'Today's executive order ensures US Steel will remain in the great Commonwealth of Pennsylvania, and be safeguarded as a critical element of America's national and economic security.' Nippon Steel and US Steel in the release said they had received regulatory approvals and that 'the partnership is expected to be finalized promptly.' The deal is expected to close by June 18, the merger agreement deadline, Japan's Nikkei reported on Saturday, without saying where it got the information. Trump earlier this week said the US would receive a so-called golden share in the post-transaction company, though it's not clear what that would entail. The companies confirmed that the US would get a golden share but didn't elaborate. The terms of the security agreement include significant and unprecedented US control measures, as well as certain control over some board seats and requirements that some leadership roles go to American citizens, according to a person familiar with the pact, speaking on condition of anonymity. The golden share does not include an equity stake in the company, the person said. Earlier: Nippon Steel Plans $6 Billion Investment in Its Japanese Mills 'The Japanese government believes that this investment will strengthen the ability of the Japanese and US steel industries to generate new innovation and lead to the strengthening of the close partnership between Japan and the US,' Japan's Minister of Economy, Trade and Industry, Yoji Muto, said in a written statement. 'We welcome the decision of the US government.' Trump and Biden as well as former Vice President Kamala Harris campaigned against the deal, before the former president blocked it in January. Trump has since reversed his position, insisting that the agreement would preserve steel jobs in the US. The text of the security agreement hasn't been released. Trump and others have previously announced other elements of the deal, including bonuses to steelworkers, a requirement to keep existing blast furnaces running for a decade, and government veto power to retain control over the board of the US Steel subsidiary. Trump has also hailed the accord as vindication of his trade policies, which have seen the administration levy tariffs in a bid to pressure companies to shift more manufacturing to the US. Japan has been engaging in negotiations with the US over trade in a bid to avoid higher levies Trump has threatened. Trump's decision to champion Nippon Steel's bid offers to provide fresh momentum for those talks. Trump held a rally in Pennsylvania two weeks ago, at US Steel's iconic Mon Valley facility, celebrating the deal with a crowd of steelworkers, even though it had not yet been finalized. Earlier: US, Mexico Near Deal to Cut Steel Duties and Cap Imports Trump also used that event to announce he was doubling his tariffs on steel and aluminum, raising them to 50% from 25%. Since that rally, government officials, company executives and deal advisers worked to hammer out the finer details and get the final signatures. The deal creates a combined company that will be the world's second-largest steelmaker. It will become a formidable domestic competitor to Nucor Corp., which for a generation has dominated the American steel industry. The acquisition also clears the way for enhanced steelmaking in areas the US has lagged in recent years, including the type of steel critical to bolster ailing electric grids across the country. The Japanese steelmaker's takeover became a political lightning rod after the leadership of the United Steelworkers – based, like US Steel itself, in Pittsburgh – staunchly opposed the tie-up. Biden sided with them, as did Trump. The deal has taken a winding path with extensions, a Biden block, a legal fight, and then Trump's decision to reexamine it before ultimately clearing it. Nippon Steel and US Steel have steadily tried to address worries, with Vice Chairman Takahiro Mori making repeated visits to the US to clinch the deal. Divisions within the union were laid bare through the process, with local union leaders expressing support for the deal and breaking with their national leadership. Trump's reversal was a few months in the making. In February, he surprised the parties by blessing some kind of a minority stake — an announcement they hadn't been privy to and didn't understand. The deal, then and now, was built on Nippon Steel buying US Steel entirely. The question was mitigation measures. The president said he supported a 'planned partnership' between the companies on May 23, without providing details of an announcement that appeared to bless the original deal with additional mitigation measures. --With assistance from Jennifer A. Dlouhy, Meghashyam Mali and Yoshiaki Nohara. (Updates with potential closing timeframe in eighth paragraph.) American Mid: Hampton Inn's Good-Enough Formula for World Domination The Spying Scandal Rocking the World of HR Software New Grads Join Worst Entry-Level Job Market in Years As Companies Abandon Climate Pledges, Is There a Silver Lining? US Tariffs Threaten to Derail Vietnam's Historic Industrial Boom ©2025 Bloomberg L.P.
Bloomberg
42 minutes ago
- Bloomberg
Keir Starmer's Quest to Keep Everything from Escalating
Bloomberg Weekend The UK prime minister is 'gravely concerned' about Israel and Iran, Mali has a mud-brick building problem, and men in finance are suffering from pelvic-floor dysfunction. By Save Welcome to the weekend! This week, the companies behind many of China's most popular AI chatbots disabled some of their services prior to an annual event in which millions of Chinese citizens take part. What was it? Find out with this week's Pointed quiz.
