How Agencies Will Get Paid in the AI Era
Plus: OpenAI's ad platform, Apple's secret chatbot, and Moncler's impossible ad.
👋 Happy Tuesday AI Marketers. Should AI agents be paid for their work? Is OpenAI finally building an ad network? Will Apple let consumers play with its AI chatbot? And are AI generated commercials going mainstream? So many questions for brands and marketers this week. Let’s get you caught up…
This Startup Could Change How Agencies Charge
Agencies have always billed for time and retainers based on human talent. But how will they bill for AI agents? Enter Paid, a startup that wants AI agents (and by extension, anyone deploying them) to charge for the ongoing value they create. If an agent cuts costs, closes sales, or boosts margins, it earns.
The implications of “results-based billing” for agents are huge, across multiple industries. For marketing agencies, the model could unlock a high-margin revenue stream tied directly to client outcomes, while protecting them from being replaced by low-cost generative AI tools. It reframes AI not as a threat, but as a win-win opportunity for both clients and agencies.
London-based Paid was founded by Outreach’s Manny Medina and has already raised $33.3 million in seed rounds. Investors see this as the missing piece for agent adoption, and if it takes off, it could be the blueprint for how agencies, SaaS firms, and others thrive in the AI age.
OpenAI’s New Brand Campaign Hits the Screen
ChatGPT now claims 700 million weekly users, up fourfold year over year. But competitors aren’t rolling over. On the heels of a new brand push for Anthropic’s Claude, OpenAI is making its own play for consumer loyalty. The international brand effort will span TV, streaming, and OOH with two new spots highlighting everyday use cases. Expect more as the category continues to heat up.
Is OpenAI Finally Building an Ad Platform?
Recent job listings point to OpenAI building its own stack for paid growth, including proprietary campaign tools, ad platform integrations, and real-time attribution. Short term, this is about scaling OpenAI’s own advertising engine. Long term, it fuels speculation about on-platform ads coming to ChatGPT. Brands and marketers everywhere will want to pay close attention.
Why is Apple Keeping Its AI Chatbot a Secret?
Apple has built an internal chatbot, code-named Veritas, to test the next-gen Siri. It looks and feels like ChatGPT, but Apple says it’s not for consumers. Insider Mark Gurman argues that’s a mistake, since rivals have proven people want a proper chatbot experience. With Siri’s overhaul due next year, Veritas could be Apple’s chance to show real progress. If it dares to make it public.
How AI is Changing Search and Shopping: Real Numbers
One stat says it all. Seventy percent of marketers believe Answer Engine Optimization will reshape digital strategy, yet only 20 percent are doing it. The gap comes down to lack of measurement, fragmented tools, and fear of moving too fast. Meanwhile, shoppers and searchers are already asking AI. The window to start implementing AEO is open now.
AI-generated ads aren’t experiments anymore, they’re moving into the mainstream. Google and R/GA just published a case study on Moncler’s “impossible ad,” revealing the key ingredients behind its success: human taste and storytelling layered on top of AI’s speed and scale, visuals that couldn’t be filmed any other way, and custom tools to keep teams consistent. Forward-thinking brands are already putting this into practice, and others won’t be far behind.
🎙️ My top 3 podcast picks this week:
AI DRIVEN MARKETER
From Toy to Tool: Creative AI Is Now Production-Ready
Creative AI just hit a tipping point. Dan and Travis Sanchez show why Suno’s V5, Gamma’s automation API, and Kling’s new video model are no longer novelties but production-grade tools. They share practical ways marketers can deploy them to level up campaigns right now.
THE AI DAILY BRIEF
How ChatGPT Pulse Could Change AI
OpenAI’s new Pulse agent delivers proactive, personalized updates drawn from your conversations, preferences, and apps. Nathaniel Whittemore explains why this shift toward context-driven AI could redefine productivity, personalization, and the very nature of how we interact with assistants.
THIS OLD MARKETING
The Rise of Creators, the Fall of Studios
Hollywood’s power is shifting from studios to solo creators. Joe Pulizzi and Robert Rose unpack why creators may lead production by 2030 and what that means for brands looking to ride the wave. An honest look at where influence, content, and budgets are heading.
Have a favorite podcast to recommend? Shoot me the details.
🚨 AI-forward companies are looking for AI-forward marketers:
Growth Marketing
OpenAI
Drive global growth for ChatGPT, execute performance campaigns and experiments, partner with engineering to build AI‑driven workflows, and develop AI‑first creative systems that scale user acquisition and retention.
AI Search & SEO Manager
Zip
Lead Zip’s transition to generative AI search by owning organic strategy across AI platforms, building SEO and AIO roadmaps, optimizing content and site structure, and collaborating with teams for discovery.
AI Search & LLM Optimization Specialist
Boostlingo
Own technical SEO, structuring content for machine readability, researching AI search strategies, applying LLM optimization, and ensuring visibility across ChatGPT, Google SGE and other engines.
Head of Marketing
RestauRent
Lead marketing for a private dining and event startup by developing paid media strategies, crafting content and SEO roadmaps, integrating AI search to boost visibility, and driving lifecycle engagement and channel expansion.
Head of Platform & Content
Moonshots Capital
Build an AI‑first platform by leading editorial and events, managing content and community, implementing AI workflows in research and reporting, and enabling portfolio support through networking.
📅 Join AI marketers at these upcoming events:
DataConnect
Columbus, OH, October 2–3
Bringing together industry leaders, technical experts and entrepreneurs to discuss the latest trends, advancements, technologies, and innovations in data, analytics, machine learning, and AI.
LavaCon
Atlanta, GA, October 5–8
LavaCon is to help content strategists, documentation managers, user experience designers, and other content professionals increase revenue and decrease costs by solving content-related business problems.
WTSFest (Women in Tech)
Philadelphia, PA, October 7
Join some of the most innovative SEOs and marketers in the industry for a full-day WTSFest designed to keep you ahead of the SEO and marketing curve while also ensuring you feel welcome, included, and comfortable.
VidSummit
Dallas, TX, October 7–9
VidSummit is for Video Creators and Influencers, Marketers, Agencies and Brands involved in the Content Creation Process. Get access to the world’s leading experts on audience growth all in one place.
1682: The Business of Innovation Conference
Philadelphia, PA, October 8
1682 explores the innovation landscape, with a focus on how AI is influencing profit + process, through behind-the-scenes demos and details. 1682 focuses on the real-world use of AI. What works, what doesn’t, and why.
Conductor
New York City, NY, October 9
Join the brightest minds and most innovative leaders in AI and digital marketing at New York’s premier AEO Conference. Learn what it takes to amplify your brand and drive growth through new AI search experiences.
Have an event to add? Send me the details.
