Pinterest vs TikTok

Bill Ready named to inaugural Pacsun Youth 25™ for leadership in positive digital experiences

Pinterest CEO Bill Ready has been named to the inaugural Pacsun Youth 25™ list, recognizing his leadership in fostering positive digital experiences for youth culture.

VideoDays Festival 2026 to Discuss New Media Economy in Cologne

The VideoDays Festival, taking place October 29 in Cologne, aims to bring together around 1,500 content creators, platforms, media houses, agencies, producers, brands, and creatives. Five years after its repositioning as an industry summit, the festival focuses on fundamental changes in the creator and community economy. Platforms such as YouTube, Pinterest, Snapchat, Meta, and Substack will participate, highlighting their roles in distribution, monetization, and community building. The event includes panels on topics like knowledge dissemination, criticism vs. outrage economy, creators as founders, YouTube as a series hotspot, and the value of niche communities. The VD Award Gala will honor outstanding German creators in 20 categories, including the Best Brand Collab Award. The festival is supported by the State Chancellery of NRW and the Film- und Medienstiftung NRW.

• VideoDays Festival takes place on October 29 in Cologne, with ~1,500 participants.
• Platforms including YouTube, Pinterest, Snapchat, Meta, and Substack will attend.
• VD Award Gala will be held, with 20 categories including Best Brand Collab.

Pinterest unveils Visual Search Ads, bringing new performance advertising to visual discovery

Pinterest announced Visual Search Ads, a new performance advertising product, at Pinterest Presents 2026. The company also announced a new foundation for multimodal AI with NVIDIA.

Shapermint targets $10M TikTok Shop sales via mature creators

Shapewear brand Shapermint is on track to generate $10 million in sales on TikTok Shop this year, driven by a network of over 5,000 active affiliate creators, 60% of whom are over 35. This strategy aligns with the brand's core demographic of women aged 35-65 and has fueled rapid growth, including a 515% month-over-month sales spike. The brand has produced over 20,000 TikTok videos since January, utilizing a Discord channel for creative briefs and a sampling process that encourages creator output. The success highlights TikTok Shop's expanding appeal beyond Gen Z, as emphasized by TikTok's Patrick Nommensen at Shoptalk Fall. Shapermint aims to reach a $4 million per month sales run-rate by year-end.

• Shapermint expects $10 million in TikTok Shop sales this year.
• 60% of Shapermint's top affiliate creators on TikTok are over age 35.
• Shapermint works with over 5,000 active creators on TikTok Shop's affiliate network.

TikTok Unveils AI Shopping Assistant and Search Ads

At Advertising Week NYC 2026, TikTok announced a new suite of AI-powered tools designed to enhance shopping discovery and streamline campaign management. Key launches include Shopping Assistant, an AI agent within TikTok's Agentic Commerce framework that provides real-time shopping guidance, and Search Ads Campaign, which leverages Smart+ automation to target high-intent users. Additionally, TikTok introduced Smart+ Creative Selection to unify brand assets, AI-generated content, and creator videos, and expanded its Model Context Protocol (MCP) for business integration with external AI platforms. TikTok also enhanced GMV Max to factor in business overheads like affiliate commissions and promotional coupons, enabling merchants to optimize campaigns based on true profit margins. Independent research from Public First highlights that TikTok ads generated €31 billion in economic value for EU brands in 2025.

• TikTok launched Shopping Assistant, an AI agent within its Agentic Commerce framework.
• TikTok introduced Search Ads Campaign, automated by Smart+ technology, to capture high-intent audiences.
• TikTok expanded its Model Context Protocol (MCP) for business integration with external AI platforms.

TikTok Adds AI Shopping Assistant and Direct Brand Checkout

TikTok has rolled out an AI-powered Shopping Assistant and a new in-app checkout feature in the U.S., allowing users to buy products directly from brands within the For You feed, separate from TikTok Shop. The conversational AI agent provides product details, shipping, sizing, and purchase assistance, while the one-click checkout enables seamless purchases without leaving the app. These features are developed in partnership with Salesforce, Shopify, Shoplazza, and Stripe, aiming to move users from discovery to action, as stated by David Kaufman, TikTok's global head of monetization and product partnerships. This expansion beyond TikTok Shop underscores TikTok's growing e-commerce footprint. The platform's Economic Impact Report estimates an $81 billion contribution to U.S. GDP, with 54 million Americans purchasing after watching videos, and TikTok Shop generated $15.8 billion in U.S. sales in 2025.

• TikTok launched an AI shopping assistant and one-click checkout feature in the U.S.
• The features are built in partnership with Salesforce, Shopify, Shoplazza, and Stripe.
• TikTok's Economic Impact Report estimates $81 billion in U.S. GDP contribution.