31% of Enterprises Now Have AI Agents in Production
Mid-year data from S&P Global and McKinsey shows enterprise AI adoption hitting a milestone that "would have read as fantasy two years ago." Telecom leads at 48%, followed by retail/CPG and banking at 47% each. Software and tech sits at 42%. The pilot phase is officially over for nearly a third of large companies.
Read on Apptad →Autonomous Ad Agents Arrive: Minimal Human Touch Required
2026's newest category: platforms that manage Google Ads, Meta Ads, and LinkedIn campaigns with minimal human intervention. These "autonomous ad agents" handle bidding, targeting, creative rotation, and budget allocation autonomously. The guide warns marketers to "watch for over-automation" — but the direction is clear.
Read on PlanXConf →Forbes: 30.5% Using GenAI for Shopping — Measurement Tools Can't Keep Up
The marketing measurement crisis deepens. Forbes reports that nearly a third of consumers now use generative AI for product discovery and shopping — and traditional measurement tools "were not built to track purchasing in this way." For marketers, this is the attribution nightmare getting worse before it gets better.
Read on Forbes →Attentive Unveils Agentic AI at Thread 2026
At its customer event, Attentive rolled out AI systems that review customer data signals across channels to evaluate engagement and intent. The platform now generates campaign recommendations, predicts performance trends, and manages message creation — moving from "tool" to "autonomous marketer."
Read on MarTech →Microsoft Build 2026: Data, AI, and ERP Converge for Autonomous Operations
Forbes coverage of Microsoft Build highlights a clear pattern: enterprises are building infrastructure for autonomous operations by converging data, AI, and ERP systems. This isn't about chatbots anymore — it's about AI that runs business processes end-to-end. The "autonomous enterprise" is moving from vision to blueprint.
Read on Forbes →💡 My Take
Read this one: The Forbes piece on measurement tools breaking under AI-driven shopping. This is the sleeper crisis for marketers. We've spent years building attribution models, and now consumers are asking ChatGPT what to buy. The measurement stack needs a complete rethink — and whoever figures it out first wins.