Spending Surge: Digital Advertising Grew 16% in Q2 (New Report)

Ad revenue grew more than 10% in Q2, with digital advertising nearing 16% growth, continuing what EMARKETER calls “a trend of steady gains in 2025 despite tariff headwinds.”

That digital ad growth, as calculated by Madison and Wall, is more than the 15% growth seen in Q1 and accounts for an approximate 70% share of all U.S. ad spend.

 

ChatGPT Referral Traffic Is Down -52% Since July 21st

I pulled from our dataset of 1+ billion ChatGPT citations and 1+ million referral visits from ChatGPT to figure out what’s going on: ChatGPT is shifting towards sites that provide ‘answers’, and the long tail of citations is shrinking as a result.

 

The Gen AI Cart: Shoppers More Willing To Let AI Handle Transactions

Consumers are more likely to use Gen AI for shopping, but many have lingering privacy concerns, according to a study by the email-text firm Omnisend. Of the 1,224  surveyed, only 32% are now reluctant to allow artificial intelligence (AI) to handle transactions, down from 66% in February. 

 

The State of Digital Trust in 2025

As AI hype accelerates and Big Tech’s influence expands, consumers are demanding more than just convenience, they’re demanding accountability. In 2025, trust has evolved from a compliance checkbox into a central consumer concern that brands need to take into account.