Latest news with #digitaladvertising
Zawya
2 days ago
- Business
- Zawya
Flyby and noon partner to bring adtech innovation to last-mile delivery
Dubai, UAE – noon, the region's leading digital ecosystem of services and products, has partnered with Flyby to introduce a new mobile digital Out-of-Home (DOOH) medium in the last-mile delivery space. The collaboration brings data-driven, real-time digital advertising to noon's delivery fleet, giving advertisers new ways to reach consumers on the move. As part of the rollout, Flyby's Smart Delivery Box will be deployed across noon's fleet — including noon Minutes and noon Food delivery bikes — turning these moving assets into a powerful, data-driven advertising platform. noon ads, already a leader in digital retail media, will now expand its offering to give advertisers a new way to reach audiences in high-impact urban environments. This partnership marks a significant step forward in Out-of-Home (OOH) advertising, positioning Flyby's mobile digital OOH solution as an addition to existing DOOH solutions. Unlike traditional Out-of-Home media, Flyby's Smart Delivery Boxes move through high-density urban areas, delivering hyper-localised ad placements at the right time, in the right place. Cheyenne Kamran, CEO, Flyby: 'We designed the Smart Delivery Box to create new value in last-mile delivery. With noon, we're proving that last-mile infrastructure can set a new standard for mobility and advertising in the region.' Fouad Aoun, GM of New Ventures, noon: 'We're constantly seeking innovative ways to bring value to our brands and sellers. Flyby's Smart Delivery Boxes allow us to expand our media network while ensuring that our advertisers get real-time, highly targeted exposure in ways that haven't been possible before.' Flyby's Smart Delivery Box has attracted growing interest across the region from aggregators and advertisers alike. Brands and media buyers looking for dynamic, data-backed audience engagement will benefit from this collaboration, which leverages noon's extensive reach and Flyby's innovative technology. By combining noon's deep advertiser relationships with Flyby's cutting-edge AdTech, brands now have access to: Advertising Where Static OOH Can't Reach: Mobile digital ads on noon's fleet capture urban audiences dynamically. Hyper-Targeted Reach: Advertisers can target by location, date, and time, ensuring relevance and efficiency. Data-Driven Insights: Brands receive reports on exposure and impressions, Seamless Creative Execution: Advertisers don't need to worry about production or execution complexities. noon and Flyby offer end-to-end creative support — from adapting assets to digital formats to deploying them on the fleet. This mutually beneficial model not only enhances the impact of noon ads' media offering but also reinforces noon's vision of digitising its fleet and unlocking new revenue streams while providing advertisers with an unmatched level of flexibility and efficiency in their campaigns. As Flyby and noon continue to push the boundaries of innovation, a new era where delivery fleets become a key pillar in the advertising economy has started. Advertisers and brands interested in future rollout phases are encouraged to register their interest before regional availability is fully committed. About Flyby Flyby is an AdTech company transforming last-mile delivery into a dynamic advertising channel. Its Smart Delivery Boxes combine digital moving OOH advertising with real-time telematics and AI-powered rider safety monitoring. With an R&D centre in Munich and operations in Dubai and Abu Dhabi, Flyby is driving innovation in mobility, advertising, and road safety. Learn more at About was founded with the objective of fostering an ecosystem of regionally based digital companies to secure the region's digital landscape's future. noon's mission is to provide customers and companies in the Middle East region with outstanding value and support. On December 12th, 2017, noon launched its consumer platform in the Kingdom of Saudi Arabia and the United Arab Emirates. noon debuted in Egypt in February 2019 and has since evolved to become the largest online shopping destination in the Middle East. Primarily a digital e-commerce platform powered by in-house technological talent, noon has swiftly developed strong native capabilities throughout its marketplace, fulfillment, logistics, and payment systems. Learn more at Forward-Looking Statements This press release contains forward-looking statements, including, but not limited to, expectations or predictions of future financial or business performance, conditions relating to the company, and the effects of new leadership on the company's success. Actual results could differ materially from those projected or forecast in the forward-looking statements. Factors that could cause actual results to differ materially include risks and uncertainties, including technological advances, regulatory changes, and market conditions. For Media Requests: Flyby: press@ Noon: pr@
Forbes
2 days ago
- Business
- Forbes
Navigating The New Ad Fraud Landscape: The Generative AI Challenge
Ashish Bhardwaj is a Engineering Lead at Google, building privacy preserving technologies to reshape the digital advertising. getty Anyone who's spent time in digital advertising knows it's a battlefield. For years, we've fought against ads that break the rules, clog up the works with spam or are outright fraudulent. It's a constant struggle to keep the ecosystem clean. Now, generative AI (GenAI) has stormed onto the scene, and frankly, it's making our jobs a whole lot harder, at least for now. GenAI is incredibly powerful. It can spin up slick, convincing ad content faster than ever before. The downside? Bad actors are using the exact same tools to create deceptive ads that are increasingly difficult to distinguish from the real. Let's look into the primary threats, examine how GenAI is amplifying these challenges and, crucially, explore actionable strategies and technological advancements that business leaders in the adtech space can implement to mitigate these evolving risks. To protect the integrity of digital advertising, we need to be crystal clear about what we're fighting. It boils down to three interconnected issues: 1. Ad Policy Violations: Think of these as breaking the rules of the road. It's a wide range, from ads making misleading claims about a product or promoting things they shouldn't (like sketchy pharmaceuticals or adult content) to technical fouls like using disruptive formats. Even things like ad size or how many requests are fired off fall under guidelines set by bodies like the IAB. 2. Ad Spam: We've all seen it: irrelevant, annoying, clickbaity junk. This isn't just about unwanted email anymore. In ads, it can be content designed purely to trick you into clicking (sensationalism) or technical spam like rapid-fire clicks generated without you even knowing. It degrades the user experience and makes people distrust all advertising. 3. Ad Fraud: This is where the real criminality lies—deliberate deception for financial gain. We're talking about fake clicks generated by bots or click farms, ads hidden from view but still counted as impressions (impression fraud) or faking valuable actions like purchases or sign-ups (conversion fraud). Fraudsters get sophisticated, too, mimicking legitimate websites to steal higher ad rates (domain spoofing) or secretly injecting extra ads on pages (ad injection). It's crucial to understand that these aren't always separate problems; a fraudulent ad likely also violates policies and could certainly be considered spam. The tactics evolve constantly, meaning our defenses have to keep getting smarter. GenAI is the ultimate double-edged sword in this fight. On the one hand, it's given the fraudsters powerful new weapons. On the other hand, it offers us new ways to defend the ecosystem. AI can be used to create incredibly realistic deepfake videos for fake celebrity endorsements or elaborate scams. For example, deepfake videos of public figures—such as those created of Al Roker and Tom Cruise—can be used to promote bogus products or services. Networks of over 200 AI-generated "slop sites" designed to mimic reputable publishers and defraud advertisers have been uncovered, filled with plagiarized or low-quality content to drive ad revenue. This is particularly frightening when combined with AI-powered bots that mimic human browsing to generate fake traffic and clicks, like the CycloneBot scheme targeting connected TV platforms by inflating views. Thankfully, the good guys have AI, too. AI, for instance, is improving the ability to prevent fraudsters and keep billions of policy-violating ads from ever showing, as Google research shows. Companies are using advanced machine learning to spot and block fraud in real time, often before it causes real damage. These algorithms learn and adapt, getting better at recognizing new fraud tactics as they emerge. We can even use AI to create synthetic data to train our fraud detection models, making them even sharper without using real user data. GenAI tools are becoming widely available, often through open-source platforms. Generative AI isn't yet a game-changer for novel attacks, but it allows threat actors to move faster and at higher volume. This means even less technically savvy crooks can now generate convincing fake content and automate their scams. It's democratized fraud creation, and I anticipate a significant spike in AI-driven risky ads because of it. The challenge of risky ads, amplified by GenAI, is real, complex and evolving. However, proactive measures can be taken. Business leaders in advertising and ad tech should consider the following: • Invest in advanced detection and verification. Companies should invest in AI-powered fraud detection tools that go beyond traditional rule-based systems. This includes solutions for detecting AI-generated content, manipulated media (deepfakes) and bot traffic. • Promote transparency and ethical AI use. Advocate for and adopt transparent practices in AI development and deployment. This includes clear labeling of AI-generated content and adhering to ethical guidelines to prevent bias and misuse. The IAB's "Generative AI Playbook For Advertising," for example, offers guidance on practical applications and ethical considerations. • Foster collaboration and information sharing. The adtech industry should continue to work collaboratively to share information about new threats and effective countermeasures. Industry bodies can play a key role in establishing standards and facilitating this exchange. • Focus on high-quality, human-verified inventory. Prioritize advertising on platforms and with publishers that demonstrate a commitment to combating fraud and maintaining high content standards. Consider solutions that help identify and avoid low-quality sites. • Adapt and innovate continuously. Companies must foster a culture of continuous learning and adaptation, staying on top of new GenAI capabilities and being prepared to adjust strategies and technologies accordingly. This includes exploring emerging approaches like smaller, more efficient AI models (SLMs) and advanced data provenance techniques. While GenAI has thrown gasoline on the fire of ad fraud, it also provides tools we need to fight back more effectively. By understanding the risks, investing in the right technologies and fostering a collaborative industry approach, we can navigate this new battlefield and work towards a cleaner, more trustworthy digital advertising ecosystem. Forbes Technology Council is an invitation-only community for world-class CIOs, CTOs and technology executives. Do I qualify?
Globe and Mail
3 days ago
- Business
- Globe and Mail
From Search to Suggestion: How AI is Reshaping the Digital Ad Economy
What happens when the search bar disappears? That question isn't as far off as it sounds. Tools like ChatGPT, Perplexity, and Google's Gemini are already changing how people look for information online. Instead of typing keywords and clicking through results, users now ask questions and get direct answers, often with product recommendations or summaries built in. No ads, no links, and no search results page. For investors, this marks a major turning point. Digital advertising has long relied on keyword targeting and clicks. But as AI chat becomes more mainstream, that model is getting harder to rely on. Visibility now depends on whether your brand shows up in the answer at all. Companies that adapt early could gain an edge. Those who don't may be left behind. Cracks in the Search Engine Empire Online visibility used to follow a simple formula: buy some keywords, rank well in search results, and watch the traffic come in. Google and Baidu built their empires on this, while businesses poured money into SEO and SEM to stay competitive. But that model is starting to show its age. In Q1 2025, Alphabet Inc's (GOOG) core ad revenue grew by 8.5%, a slowdown from 10.6% in Q4 2024. Younger users are also skipping search altogether: nearly 40% of Gen Z now prefer TikTok or Instagram when searching for information online. Investors are already seeing the impact. Alphabet's P/E ratio has fallen from 25.57 in Q4 2024 to 19.52 as of May 2025. Baidu, Inc's (BIDU) revenue dropped 1% in 2024, ending the year at $18.24 billion. Search platforms may still dominate today, but staying relevant will mean evolving with how users discover content. The Rise of AI-Powered Discovery The way people find information is shifting fast. Instead of scrolling through search results, users are turning to AI tools like ChatGPT, Claude, and Gemini for direct answers. These systems don't just summarize, but they suggest products, services, and decisions in real time. Ask ChatGPT where to invest $500 or what the best CRM tool is, and it won't give you a list of links. It will offer a curated response based on how it processes data. Claude and Gemini do the same, bypassing traditional web rankings. That's a big change, and showing up on page one of Google isn't the only goal anymore. The real question is whether your brand appears in the AI's response. If your business depends on online visibility, it's worth understanding how to rank your website on ChatGPT, a new frontier in digital strategy. Staying discoverable in AI-generated results could soon be just as important as traditional SEO. For businesses and investors, this presents both a challenge and a window of opportunity. Ad-Tech Companies Getting Ahead of the AI Curve Some ad-tech companies aren't waiting, they're already shifting strategies to meet this moment. Why These Stocks Could Lead the Shift The Trade Desk (TTD) is moving early with Unified ID 2.0, a system built to replace third-party cookies while still allowing targeted ads. It's privacy-focused and designed for today's evolving data rules. As of late May 2025, the stock trades at a forward P/E of 43.48, far below its five-year average trailing P/E ratio of 232.63, suggesting a more reasonable valuation. Meta is using its in-house AI tools, including LLaMA 4, to sharpen ad targeting. It posted $42.31 billion in Q1 2025 revenue, beating analyst expectations. However, Reality Labs continues to weigh on results, with $17.7 billion in losses last year. Perion Network (PERI) is branching out into retail media and digital out-of-home ads, key after Microsoft changed its Bing deal, which affected Perion's search business. As of May 2025, its EV/EBITDA ratio is around 2.4, reflecting cautious investor sentiment for future growth. These companies are showing what adaptation looks like in real time. Who's At Risk? Some of the biggest names in tech still lean heavily on traditional ad models, and that could be a problem as user behavior starts to change. Alphabet continues to lead in digital advertising, pulling in $66.9 billio n in ad revenue in Q1 2025. But growth is slowing, and the company's model still depends largely on keyword-based ads, exactly the kind that become less useful when users start getting answers directly from AI. As people spend less time clicking through search results, Google's ad reach could face pressure. Baidu is in a similar spot in China. Its AI development is strong, but the business side hasn't caught up. In early 2025, overall revenue was up just 3%, and online ad sales actually dropped 6%. So far, Baidu hasn't figured out how to turn its AI tech into meaningful ad dollars. Amazon (AMZN) is a bit of a hybrid. Ad sales jumped 18% in Q1, driven by its retail platform. But while Amazon is growing fast in e-commerce advertising, it doesn't yet play a central role in AI-generated recommendations, which could become a bigger deal over time. As more users turn to AI tools for answers, these companies could see ad prices (like CPMs) dip unless they adapt their strategies for a post-search world. What Investors Should Watch Next The shift toward AI-powered discovery is still in its early stages, but the signs are already there and investors would be smart to keep an eye on them. Start with the basics: if cost-per-click (CPC) and cost-per-thousand impressions (CPM) start falling on traditional platforms like Google or Bing, it could be a red flag that attention is drifting elsewhere. Simultaneously, look for growth in AI-generated product placements where tools like ChatGPT or Gemini are surfacing brand suggestions inside their responses. Another key signal? Where the ad dollars are going. If more brands begin shifting their budgets toward 'in-AI' strategies, like optimizing for visibility inside generative answers instead of search rankings, it could mark the beginning of a much larger trend. The big picture here isn't just about better targeting or smarter data. The real prize is visibility, being the first answer a user sees when they ask a question. That's where the next digital advertising gold rush could happen. Don't Underestimate the Discovery Shift AI-powered discovery is already changing how people interact with the web. Instead of searching and clicking, users are now asking and receiving, fast, direct, and often without leaving the chat. For ad-tech companies, that's a big change, and one that creates both risk and opportunity. The players that adapt will find new ways to reach customers and unlock revenue. Those that don't may struggle to stay relevant. For investors, this isn't just about who's building the best AI models. It's about who shows up in the answer box. Because in this new landscape, the first response is the new front page of the internet.
Globe and Mail
3 days ago
- Business
- Globe and Mail
2 Top Bargain Stocks Ready for a Bull Run
The tech sector has been a market-beating beast in recent years. Tech-heavy exchange-traded funds (ETFs) like the Vanguard Information Technology ETF (NYSEMKT: VGT) and the Invesco QQQ Trust (NASDAQ: QQQ) have delivered annual returns of more than 21% over the last three years. Broad market trackers like the Vanguard S&P 500 ETF (NYSEMKT: VOO) only gained 15.5% per year over the same period. Yes, that's a fantastic return from a historic perspective, but the tech sector offered even stronger gains. Where to invest $1,000 right now? Our analyst team just revealed what they believe are the 10 best stocks to buy right now. Learn More » The technology boom has been driven by artificial intelligence (AI) news, starting with the public release of ChatGPT in November 2022. Many leaders in the AI market have soared sky-high, adding fuel to the tech sector's market performance fires, but also making those market darlings a bit expensive. Fortunately, the market-moving forces left a few top-notch companies behind. I still see several tech stocks with a combination of bright business prospects and modest stock prices. Let's check out a couple of underappreciated bargain-bin tech stocks. This dynamic duo looks ready for a fresh bull run. 1. Criteo Digital advertising has been a troubled sector since the first signs of an inflation crisis in 2021. Paris-based commerce media specialist Criteo (NASDAQ: CRTO) provides purchase-inspiring ad services to global brands. This focus placed the Parisian company in the epicenter of the inflation-based slowdown -- why invest in lavish marketing campaigns when consumers are pinching pennies and tightening belts? Criteo's revenues have indeed slumped since then, and so has the stock price. You know what's surging in recent quarters, though? That would be Criteo's free cash flows: CRTO Free Cash Flow data by YCharts The cash profits took a temporary dip, but came back stronger, with trailing cash flows reaching an all-time high in May's Q1 2025 report. But Criteo's stock price is down more than 30% in the last quarter, and the shares are trading at the bargain-bin valuation of 11.3 times earnings and 6.6 times free cash flow. I'm not saying the digital ad market is roaring back to life in the spring of 2025. The political climate may result in another inflation spike, and advertisers are already reducing their ad-spot spending right now. Hence, Criteo's undervalued stock may see more volatility and weakness in the coming months. However, I think the market makers have underestimated Criteo's ability to turn cash profits in a soft market. The Criteo shares you buy at a discount in this downswing should return to more reasonable valuation ratios someday. At the same time, the company's robust cash generation makes it less vulnerable to short-term financial challenges. You can buy Criteo stock with confidence while it's cheap. This one is poised for great long-term returns, and patience is the greatest Wall Street virtue of them all. 2. Hewlett Packard Enterprise My next recommendation is more of a household name. Hewlett Packard Enterprise (NYSE: HPE) has been around (in some form) since 1939. As the data center and cloud computing operator of the old HP business, HP Enterprise (aka HPE) plays a serious part in the AI boom. Indeed, seven out of the 10 most powerful supercomputers today were built by HP Enterprise. Only Chinese rival Lenovo has more systems in the top 500 than HP Enterprise, and nobody can match the total number-crunching performance of this company's ultra-powerful systems. Any company or organization that needs a top-performance system for their AI training and operations is likely to check out HP Enterprise's catalog first. So I'm talking about an AI powerhouse here. Yet, the stock price has dropped 16% lower year to date while smaller system builders Super Micro Computers (NASDAQ: SMCI) and Dell (NYSE: DELL) are up by 41% and down by just 1%, respectively. Trading at 8.9 times earnings and 14.3 times free cash flow, HP Enterprise looks downright cheap next to these challengers. HP Enterprise's stock could double or triple in price and still be affordable next to Supermicro or Dell. This could be a great value play on the hardware side of the AI boom. Should you invest $1,000 in Criteo right now? Before you buy stock in Criteo, consider this: The Motley Fool Stock Advisor analyst team just identified what they believe are the 10 best stocks for investors to buy now… and Criteo wasn't one of them. The 10 stocks that made the cut could produce monster returns in the coming years. Consider when Netflix made this list on December 17, 2004... if you invested $1,000 at the time of our recommendation, you'd have $653,389!* Or when Nvidia made this list on April 15, 2005... if you invested $1,000 at the time of our recommendation, you'd have $830,492!* Now, it's worth noting Stock Advisor 's total average return is982% — a market-crushing outperformance compared to171%for the S&P 500. Don't miss out on the latest top 10 list, available when you join Stock Advisor. See the 10 stocks » *Stock Advisor returns as of May 19, 2025
Yahoo
4 days ago
- Business
- Yahoo
Why Unity Software Stock Skyrocketed This Week
Unity stock got a big boost from bullish analyst coverage this week. Solid gains for the broader market also helped lift Unity's share price. Jeffries is seeing signs that Unity's AI-powered digital-advertising platform could power a comeback for the company. 10 stocks we like better than Unity Software › Unity Software (NYSE: U) stock closed out last week's trading with big gains thanks to bullish coverage from an analyst. The company's share price ended this Friday's trading up 25.7% from the previous week's market close. On Friday, Jeffries published new coverage on Unity and upgraded its rating on the stock from hold to buy. Unity's share price also got a boost from bullish momentum for the broader market over last week's trading. The S&P 500 index ended the week up 1.9%. Jeffries released a new note on Unity stock before the market opened on Friday, upgrading its rating on the stock to buy and raising its one-year price target from $22 per share to $29 per share. The investment firm sees signs that Unity's new Vector digital advertising is gaining traction and will help accelerate a turnaround for the business. Vector is using artificial intelligence (AI) to provide better ad targeting for games and applications built on Unity's development platform, and the company is positioning the new software as a key pillar of its comeback strategy. On the one hand, Unity is still in the relatively early stages of its turnaround effort, and the company could continue to see soft sales performance this year as it rolls out Vector and transitions customers to the platform. On the other hand, Jeffries thinks Vector will help power accelerating sales growth next year and beyond. If the new software helps reposition the company as a stronger player in the app advertising market, Unity stock could climb well above current levels. It's too early to say whether that will be the case, but the stock could deliver big upside for risk-tolerant investors. Before you buy stock in Unity Software, consider this: The Motley Fool Stock Advisor analyst team just identified what they believe are the for investors to buy now… and Unity Software wasn't one of them. The 10 stocks that made the cut could produce monster returns in the coming years. Consider when Netflix made this list on December 17, 2004... if you invested $1,000 at the time of our recommendation, you'd have $651,049!* Or when Nvidia made this list on April 15, 2005... if you invested $1,000 at the time of our recommendation, you'd have $828,224!* Now, it's worth noting Stock Advisor's total average return is 979% — a market-crushing outperformance compared to 171% for the S&P 500. Don't miss out on the latest top 10 list, available when you join . See the 10 stocks » *Stock Advisor returns as of May 19, 2025 Keith Noonan has positions in Unity Software. The Motley Fool has positions in and recommends Unity Software. The Motley Fool has a disclosure policy. Why Unity Software Stock Skyrocketed This Week was originally published by The Motley Fool Error in retrieving data Sign in to access your portfolio Error in retrieving data Error in retrieving data Error in retrieving data Error in retrieving data
