Meta's AI Restructuring; Report on Australia's U16 Social Media Restriction Sparks Debate; Publicis Groupe Australia Introduces Influential Advertising Agency
In a rapidly evolving digital landscape, two global giants, Meta and Publicis Groupe, are making significant strides in the realm of artificial intelligence (AI) and influencer marketing.
Michael Rebelo, CEO of Publicis Groupe ANZ, has highlighted the significant growth of influencer marketing over the past 18 months. He emphasised the need for a unified approach, as his company's new agency, Influential, now boasts Australia's most connected influencer and social agency.
Influential, a combination of Publicis Groupe's social, content, and influencer capabilities, offers end-to-end solutions for brands, including strategy, creative, content production, influencer partnerships, and social media buying. The agency houses more than 30 specialists in social strategy, content, and paid media.
Meanwhile, Meta is pursuing multiple strategies to dominate AI. The tech giant has hired Alexandr Wang, the 28-year-old founder of Scale AI, as the head of its AI efforts. This reorganization led to the establishment of Meta Superintelligence Labs, aimed at developing superintelligence.
However, internal tensions at Meta have surfaced. Shengjia Zhao, co-creator of OpenAI's ChatGPT, threatened to quit Meta just days after joining, eventually returning to OpenAI before being named Meta's chief AI scientist.
Meta is also considering partnerships with Google's Gemini model and OpenAI for AI improvements in its apps. Discussions include using Google's model for conversational responses in Meta AI and OpenAI's models to power Meta AI and other social media tools.
While Meta and Publicis Groupe are making strides in AI and influencer marketing, the Australian government is considering a ban on social media for children under 16, raising concerns about potential impacts on young users.
In a separate development, the Australian government has launched a new agency called Influential, focused on social and influencer marketing. This launch is separate from the government's plans to ban social media accounts for users under 16.
Influential builds on Publicis Groupe's global acquisitions of Influential in 2024 and Captiv8 in 2025. The agency already works with major brands across various industries such as telecom, FMCG, retail, beauty, and food.
Mark Zuckerberg is leading a significant leadership shake-up at Meta, with recent hires including Shengjia Zhao, Alexandr Wang, and Nat Friedman. Meta is also pursuing its own technology, specifically Llama 5, while aiming to improve its AI products through short-term partnerships.
As both Meta and Publicis Groupe continue to innovate, the future of AI and influencer marketing remains an intriguing prospect.
