The GPT-5 Launch: What Went Wrong
Plus: The impact of AI-generated images on SEO, small agencies are making a comeback, and marketers just got music superpowers.
👋 Happy Tuesday AI Marketers. Are users more upset over GPT-5’s performance, or the way OpenAI handled the launch? Will AI-generated images hurt your Google rankings? And, did ElevenLabs just reinvent music? Lots happening this week. Let’s get you caught up…
Three Big Lessons From the GPT-5 Backlash
GPT-5 was meant to be a giant leap forward. Instead, OpenAI spent launch week apologizing and backtracking after replacing GPT-4o without warning. Users revolted, citing broken workflows and the loss of a model personality they had grown attached to. Some even described 4o as a source of emotional support during difficult times.
CEO Sam Altman restored access, raised reasoning limits, and promised more transparency. Casey Newton argues the uproar should change how AI labs retire models: phase-outs instead of abrupt cuts, more user control or visibility into model choice, and a recognition that once a product reaches hundreds of millions of people, even small changes can spark big reactions.
The Future Belongs to (Right-Sized) Agencies
Bigger doesn’t always mean better. A wave of agile independent and mid-sized shops is winning global accounts by combining startup-level speed with big agency reach. They are cutting layers, embracing AI without the bureaucracy, and delivering impressive work that moves from idea to execution in weeks, not months.
Google Says AI-Generated Images Won’t Hurt Your Rankings
Good news if you are mixing AI into your content workflow (and you should be). Google’s Gary Illyes says AI-generated images will not hurt rankings, provided the associated text is high quality and relevant. In fact, smart use of visuals could boost traffic via image search.
Alexa+ Underwhelms With Real-World Tests
Amazon’s Alexa+ was supposed to change everything. Blending powerful AI with everyday voice assistant skills, supplying every household with an all-knowing task rabbit. But it’s buggy, prone to inexplicable errors, and missing features. Will big tech start pulling back on big promises? Or is this the new normal?
How Top Brands Are Infusing AI Everywhere
Unilever, Heineken, and Visa aren’t just using AI for efficiencies, they’re baking it into the core of how they operate. From tracking share of voice in AI search to orchestrating fleets of AI agents, the goal is faster decisions, smarter targeting, and an always-on growth engine.
ElevenLabs just launched Eleven Music. Wow. It’s a studio-grade AI music generator for creators, brands, and businesses, capable of composing everything from cinematic scores and ad jingles to podcast themes, social content tracks, and video game soundtracks. Just describe the genre, mood, or style and get fully produced, commercially usable music in minutes. And unlike many AI music tools, it’s built on licensing deals with artists, labels, and publishers.
More on Eleven Music →
🎙️ My top 3 podcast episodes this week:
BIG TECHNOLOGY
Does GPT-5 Live Up to the Hype?
Alex and Ranjan break down GPT-5 like only Big Technology can. Why it excels, but still falls short of AGI. And whether AI models need more than book smarts to truly thrive. They also cover GPT-5 for coding, travel planning, medicine, and more.
THE MARKETING MILLENNIALS
Thriving as a Solo Marketer at an Early-Stage Startup
Sandy Mangat shares how she built Pocus’ brand, category, and community from scratch as its first and only marketer. She explains how to set priorities, merge brand and demand, and why “delusional optimism” is her best skill.
AI SIX PODCAST
Jobs in Marketing Are Changing
What happens when your next marketing interview isn’t about campaigns or channels, but about your AI competence? Michael O’Kane shares how AI skills are becoming central to hiring, what futureproofing your CV looks like, and how to prepare for AI-focused interviews.
Have a favorite podcast to recommend? Shoot me the details.
🚨 AI-forward companies are looking for AI-forward marketers:
Head of AI Marketing
Camber Partners
Lead AI marketing strategy, designing prompts for tools like ChatGPT and Claude, and applying AI to segmentation, personalization and lifecycle content while building repeatable workflows and communicating complex ideas clearly.
Details →
Sr. Marketing Transformation & AI Manager
AMD
Join AMD’s AI and digital marketing team to deploy AI solutions that boost engagement and business results, manage AI projects across content creation, trend analysis, automation and campaign optimization.
Details →
Creative Marketing Strategist
Lotus Interworks
Lead performance-driven campaigns by blending AI tools, paid ads, content and SEO, work closely with clients and teams, and use tools like ChatGPT, Jasper and Surfer SEO to improve targeting and report on metrics like ROAS and conversion rates.
Details →
Sr. AI Search Optimization Specialist
Lucid Software
Shape Lucid’s AI search visibility by developing strategies that make content discoverable and cited across Google AI Overviews, ChatGPT, Gemini, Perplexity and Claude, and optimize content while collaborating with SEO and content teams.
Details →
AI Search Specialist
Manychat
Lead Manychat’s AI-powered search strategy, ensure content is structured and cited across ChatGPT, Perplexity, Google SGE, Gemini and Claude, craft AI-optimized briefs, analyze AI results and collaborate with SEO and content teams.
Details →
📅 Join AI marketers at conferences, summits, and industry events.
AI Accelerate
San Diego, CA, August 20–21
WordCamp
Portland, OR, August 26–29
Contact.io
Denver, CO, August 27–29
Inbound
San Francisco, CA, September 3–5
DTC Live
New York City, NY, September 4
Product Marketing Summit
San Francisco, CA, September 10–11
AI for Marketers Summit
San Francisco, CA, September 11
Content Marketing World
San Diego, CA, September 16–17
AI Conference
San Francisco, CA, September 17–18
HeroConf
San Diego, CA, September 23–24
GAI World
Boston, MA, September 29–30
Have an event to add? Send me the details.
