Meta Pushes AI Ads, Google Adds Audio Summaries to Search

Meta introduced an AI image-to-video tool that converts product photos into multi-scene video ads. Advertisers can upload up to 20 images and receive automatically assembled videos complete with music and overlaid text.

The rollout coincides with the Cannes Lions festival, where Meta is courting marketers alongside rival TikTok’s own AI ad demos. Advertising supplies about 98% of Meta’s revenue, and the company says cheaper creative production frees small businesses to spend more on its platforms.

The launch extends Zuckerberg’s broader AI agenda, which already includes a $14.3 billion investment in Scale AI and the formation of a “superintelligence” team. Generative AI now touches multiple ad formats at Meta—images, GIFs, and consumer text-to-video—marking a rapid expansion inside its core revenue engine.

Google starts testing Audio Overviews that read AI-generated summaries aloud for select search queries. The feature, powered by Gemini, appears today inside the Labs experimental program.

Users can trigger an audio summary when Google judges it useful and listen through a simple player with playback controls and source links. Feedback buttons let listeners rate each overview while the test runs.

Audio Overviews build on Google’s existing AI Overviews and replicate functions already in NotebookLM and Gemini. The timing comes just days after a Wall Street Journal report said AI Overviews are draining traffic from news publishers, highlighting tension between Google’s AI tools and content providers.

Wimbledon and IBM will debut two fan-facing AI features powered by Watsonx at this year’s Championships. Match Chat answers real-time fan questions during singles matches, while Live Likelihood to Win updates moment-to-moment projections of who will prevail.

Match Chat runs on Watsonx Orchestrate with IBM Granite LLMs trained in Wimbledon’s editorial style and is monitored by tournament staff for accuracy. The win-probability tool improves on an earlier pre-match model by recalculating after every point to reflect momentum swings.

The All England Club frames these tools as a way to keep fans on its app and site amid abundant online alternatives. IBM and tournament executives say richer interactivity is central to expanding the global audience beyond the 670 million people who followed last year’s event.

Neurable’s AI headsets measure your brain waves to optimize focus and productivity. Imagine cutting distractions and boosting efficiency with real-time insights into your mental state.

Customize Neurable experiences to align with your unique business goals. CEOs can tailor usage for team workflows, ensuring peak performance and innovative decision-making that drives growth.

Leading companies rely on Neurable's scientifically-backed technology for proven results. Businesses consistently report increased employee satisfaction and output thanks to data-driven insights.

Lionsgate and AMC Networks have both signed agreements with AI video startup Runway to fold its generative tools into film and TV workflows. The Lionsgate pact lets Runway train on the studio’s library, while AMC gains access for marketing materials and development tasks.

Runway’s AI Film Festival drew 6,000 short-film submissions this year, up from 300 in its first outing, and packed theaters in Los Angeles and New York. Every finalist used generative video, underscoring how quickly the technique is moving from fringe experiment to standard practice.

Lionsgate vice chair Michael Burns said “everybody” in Hollywood is already using AI even if they refuse to admit it publicly. He added that the latest model outputs now hold up on the big screen and enable higher-quality content at lower cost.

AI-generated albums by fictitious groups are quietly multiplying on YouTube and seeping into Spotify playlists. One channel, Zaruret, uploaded 135 long videos in seven months and has already collected millions of views and 37,600 subscribers for its fake bands.

CISAC estimates that AI-generated music revenue will rise from $100 million in 2023 to $4 billion by 2028, accounting for 20% of streaming income. YouTube now requires creators to label “altered or synthetic” media and may penalize violators, while Spotify has no comparable disclosure rule.

The absence of clear labels is fueling user backlash, including a Spotify Community petition asking for AI song filters. Academics and YouTube officials note that hidden synthetic tracks erode listener trust and create a sense of deception.