Need to Know News - November 27th, 2024
In this week's Need to Know News edition:
🤖 HBO is turning your favorite shows into AI-curated shopping sprees...
🤖 TruStone's AI assistant 'Ruth' cuts call volume by 20%...
🤖 QuickBooks' new AI helper slashes small business paperwork...
Plus, a whole lot more!
AI In Action
Warner Bros. Discovery Taps A.I. to Create Ads That Ask Viewers to Shop for Products Similar to Ones in Their Favorites Shows
Warner Bros. Discovery is transforming how we shop while we stream. Using AI technology, they're launching smart ads on Max. The tech allows viewers to buy products like items they spot in shows and movies.
"We see an opportunity to broaden how we make ads more relevant to our consumer, especially in streaming," says Ryan Gould, Warner's ad sales chief.
The company has scanned 90% of Max's content to identify theme-based shopping opportunities. Wayfair is the first major retailer to jump on board. For example, viewers watching "Holiday Baking Championship" can scan QR codes. Then, browse up to 20 kitchen items matching what they see on screen.
Study: Local-Market Ad Professionals Are Embracing AI Tech
A new study from Frequence shows 80% of digital ad professionals now use AI tools to buy ads and run campaigns. Yet most still feel intense pressure to boost revenue by 20% or more.
The survey of 500 local ad leaders reveals both progress and pain points. While 69% have stable or growing budgets, 73% admit they're struggling to keep up with rapid tech changes. Particularly challenging are digital video and connected TV advertising.
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TruStone Financial Credit Union Reduces Call Volume 20% with Eltropy AI Chatbot
Meet Ruth, the AI chatbot that's revolutionizing customer service at TruStone Credit Union. Named after the bank's first bookkeeper, Ruth now handles almost half of all member conversations. Most notably, the AI has cut phone calls by 20%.
The change was desperately needed. TruStone's staff was drowning in messages - about 5,500 conversations weekly, with 1,000 messages piling up every Monday morning. "We'd get caught up on Saturday and then come into a thousand more Monday morning," says Jill Schaffler, who leads TruStone's tech team.
The results are impressive: member satisfaction hit 9.4 out of 10, wait times dropped to 34 seconds, and missed inquiries plunged from 1,300 to just 72.
QuickBooks' New AI Assistant Slashes Paperwork Time for Small Businesses
Small business owners are about to get their time back. Intuit launched an AI helper that turns tedious tasks into single clicks - like magic. The tool, called Intuit Assist, transforms emails and handwritten notes into professional invoices.
Most business owners juggle 10 different apps to run their company. This AI assistant fixes that nightmare by connecting everything in one place. Early results show it helps businesses get paid 45% faster - shaving 5 whole days off invoice payments.
"I can finally focus on helping people instead of drowning in admin work," says Kim Cross, who tested the tool at her skincare company. The AI assistant does more than invoices. It scans receipts, matches transactions, and even warns about cash problems before they hit.
At the Frontier of AI
Ex-Google Star Shows How AI Chatbots Could Make Money Through Smart Ads
Online ads are about to get way smarter, says Marissa Mayer. At a recent AI summit, the former Google leader shared an exciting vision for AI advertising that could change how we shop.
Think about buying concert tickets. Instead of seeing basic ads, AI could show you exact seat locations and prices instantly. But companies will need to share more data than ever to make this work.
"Advertisers will have to partner even more closely with search engines," says Mayer, pointing to how Google Shopping already gets detailed inventory data from stores. This model could help AI companies like OpenAI make money while giving users better answers.
Why Meta's AI Strategy Could Leave Google in the Digital Dust
Here's a surprising twist in the AI race. Meta, the company behind Facebook, might beat Google at its own game. Business expert Howard Yu explains why.
Google's traditional search business faces a big problem. AI chatbots now give direct answers, so people don't need to click on search ads anymore. Meanwhile, Meta is turning AI into a money-making machine for ads. Their smart system even works better than before Apple's privacy changes disrupted tracking.
"Meta isn't just creating ad space — it's turning everything into potential inventory," says Yu. The company ranks third in future readiness, right behind Nvidia and Microsoft. Their secret? They're using AI to make every image and video shoppable, while Google struggles to protect its old business model.
AI Marketing Tools Set to Triple in Value
The future of marketing is looking very AI-powered. A new report shows the market for AI marketing tools will grow from $4.9 billion to a whopping $16.23 billion by 2034.
Why such massive growth? These smart tools are changing how companies work. They analyze customer data instantly, send personalized messages, and make smarter decisions about where to spend marketing dollars. Cloud-based tools are leading the charge, grabbing 60% of the market. And China is setting the pace with the fastest growth rate at 13.1%.
Airbnb’s AI Plan: No Chatbot, More Personalization
Airbnb just made a bold move in the AI race. While other travel companies rush to launch AI chatbots, Airbnb tried one with OpenAI and wasn't impressed. "We were not satisfied with it," says Chief Business Officer Dave Stephenson.
Instead, they're getting personal. The company now asks fun questions like "What's your most useless skill?" to understand their 5 million users better. Why? They want AI to match travelers with perfect stays across their 8 million properties.
CEO Brian Chesky has bigger plans. He sees user profiles becoming "the center of the solar system of Airbnb," with homes just one piece of the puzzle. But don't expect quick changes - Chesky admits it'll take years to fully power Airbnb with AI.
AI Chat Bot Can Conduct Research Interviews on Unprecedented Scale
Scientists just created an AI chat bot that could change how we do research forever. This smart interviewer, developed at the London School of Economics, can talk to thousands of people in just hours.
Here's the surprising part: people actually prefer talking to the AI. Only 15% said they'd rather chat with a human interviewer. Why? The AI comes across as judgment-free. That makes people feel more comfortable sharing their true thoughts. They even write 142% more than in regular surveys.
Soon, the AI will even understand voice conversations.
AI Avatars Are Arriving on the Chinese version of TikTok. Will They Come to America?
ByteDance is making digital twins of social media stars. Their Chinese app Douyin (TikTok's sister) just launched the V Project, letting creators make AI copies of themselves to chat with fans 24/7.
Sound familiar? Big tech companies in America are racing to do the same thing. Meta is creating celebrity chatbots for Instagram, while some creators are already cashing in. Streamer Amouranth's AI clone made $34,000 in just one day.
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