Following speculation that emerged last fall, Apple has officially announced that it will start serving ads in Apple Maps. Ads will be shown alongside mapping search results, using a combination of location and contextual targeting.
SMB marketing and SaaS powerhouse Thryv (Nasdaq: THRY) today announced a new function that automates marketing workflows. Known as AI Lead Flow, it unifies marketing and sales automation features into one comprehensive tool that frees up SMBs to spend time on higher-value tasks.
We’ve always thought there should be a Fortune 500 for local media, advertising, and commerce. That could apply to the sell-side players (networks, apps & tech vendors), or the buy side (brands and SMBs that advertise and operate in local markets). SOCi has accomplished the latter with the SOCi100.
Vendasta this week launched its latest AI employee, a CRM agent. Joining its AI employees that handle reception, inbound leads, and marketing tasks, the new agent is purpose-built to offload the always-onerous tasks of recording and gaining insights from customer and prospect interactions.
Google Maps just got smarter. The company announced that Maps will get a new Gemini-powered ‘Ask Maps’ feature that makes the UX more conversational. This is just the latest in a sequence of updates that bring more AI to Google Maps, and the latest development in the ongoing mapping wars.
Reputation management continues to gain importance as a marketing function for companies of all sizes. This includes everything from review monitoring to customer interaction to boost brand sentiment. Alchemer is an emerging player in this space, which was recently validated in Gartner’s Magic Quadrant.
Base44 this week launched a set of AI agents that work proactively across a range of job functions for businesses. Known as Superagents, this latest offering from the Wix-owned Base44 joins a growing trend around AI agents that are tuned to specific job functions for autonomous productivity.
AI apps – or regular apps that integrate AI – seem to be a road map priority for most players in tech & media spheres. But are they chasing buzz rather than substance? Is AI a value add? Of course, the answer depends on the app but in the aggregate, AI can increase churn according to a new study.
X is testing a new advertising format designed to blend more seamlessly into user conversations. The experimental feature places a small contextual ad unit directly beneath
Wix has announced that its vibe coding tool, Harmony, is now available as an app within ChatGPT. Previously available on Wix’s platform, the move to ChatGPT expands Harmony’s surface area and reduces its barriers to adoption. This is a fitting move for a tool that itself is all about lowering barriers.
Vcita is out this week with a new report that validates and further quantifies what we’ve largely observed and suspected: SMBs want automation. Known as the 2026 Small Business Adoption Report, it points to heightened demand levels for anything that can help SMBs automate marketing and operations.
The tech world has passed a big milestone, which came and went with relatively little fanfare. After years of gaining ground on Walmart as the world’s largest retailer by revenue, Amazon surpassed it. In its Q4 earnings, it reported full-year 2025 revenue of $717 billion, passing Walmarts $681 billion.
New research from Scorpion reveals a widening AI adoption gap between consumers and small businesses—raising urgent questions about local discovery, visibility, and marketing readiness.
In this edition of Localogy’s Local Radar, we look at newly-funded companies, Quanta, ScrunchAI & a re-examination of Harvey.
There’s ample talk these days about the importance of marketing across several channels. The idea is that marketing run in-tandem across social, search and messaging can achieve “whole is greater than the sum of its parts” results. But the problem is that few companies, including SMBs, actually do it.
The last two years of AI’s rise have been scored by a chorus of punditry that goes something like: “AI is here, and it changes everything.” It’s a familiar tune in hype cycles that eventually morphs into “XYZ will change some things.” So jumping ahead, it’s a question of where AI works… and where it doesn’t.
Wix is on a roll. After launching its Harmony vibe coding tool, and a recent integration with Quickbooks, the company’s latest move is to bring instant bookings to Google Search, Maps, and AI Mode. Searchers using those products can transact directly with businesses that run on Wix.
New research from Yext reveals the inner workings of the AI engines increasingly used by consumers in place of traditional search. Though this usage continues to grow, the rules of engagement for companies seeking visibility remain unclear. But according to Yext, AI SEO may be harder than it looks.
AI is no longer just ranking local businesses. It’s actively shaping how businesses are described, summarized, and recommended to potential customers. For local businesses, this
Snap has quietly built up to a new milestone that’s turning heads on Wall Street. Its subscription business – consisting of Snapchat+ and a few other things – has reached 25 million paid users. That brings with it an ARR of $1 billion – a well-timed diversification move as the broader ad world suffers.
