Instagram launches Repost, Interactive Map, and Friend
Meta has launched three new features on Instagram that will help users connect better with their friends: Repost, Interactive Map, and Friends tab.
With the Repost button, users can now repost Reels or Posts they think will resonate with their friends. The feature will give credit to the original poster and enable artists to connect with more people.
Users can also add notes to their reposts. To do so, one needs to click on the repost button to share a reel or post, and they can add a note by filling in the thinking bubble that displays on the screen, and clicking the save button.
Instagram map is similar to Snapchat Map, which the platform has had for a long time. This feature allows users to share their last active location with a chosen group of friends. The user can see their locations and content they’ve posted from interesting places.
X Makes Grok 4 Free to All Users
X is very keen to get more people using its AI tools, with the platform today announcing that Grok 4 is now free to access for all users worldwide.
Grok 4 is the latest version of xAI’s model, using the power of xAI’s expanding processing stack to power its rapid responses. xAI claims that Grok 4 has achieved the best results in all AI benchmarking tests, significantly outperforming the latest models from OpenAI and Meta (though some third-party testing contradicts this claim).
And now, everyone will be able to try it out, and see what xAI’s latest AI system can do.
Google users are less likely to click on links when an AI summary appears
Last year, Google introduced “AI Overviews,” a feature that displays an artificial intelligence-generated result summary at the top of many Google search pages. This feature is available to millions of U.S. Google users. Online publishers recently have attributed declining web traffic to these summaries replacing traditional search results, claiming that many users are relying on the summaries instead of following links to the publishers’ websites.
A Pew Research Center report published this spring analyzed data from 900 U.S. adults who agreed to share their online browsing activity. About six-in-ten respondents (58%) conducted at least one Google search in March 2025 that produced an AI-generated summary. Additional analysis found that Google users were less likely to click on result links when visiting search pages with an AI summary compared with those without one. For searches that resulted in an AI-generated summary, users very rarely clicked on the sources cited.
Meta expands brand rights protection, Enables scam ad reporting at scale
Meta has announced significant upgrades to its Brand Rights Protection tool, introducing expanded scam ad reporting and a more streamlined takedown request process to help businesses safeguard their brand presence across Facebook and Instagram.
The tool, which allows brands to detect and report misuse of their intellectual property and business identity, will now enable all enrolled businesses to report suspected scam ads at scale — even when those ads do not directly infringe on their IP. The update follows an initial test phase and addresses one of the most frequent requests from businesses.
“These updates further empower businesses to take control of how their brand is used and help protect people from harmful or misleading experiences,” Meta said in its announcement.
Elon Musk Embeds Ads in Grok AI
Elon Musk’s xAI has introduced a new monetization strategy for its AI chatbot, Grok, by embedding targeted advertisements into user interactions. The move, announced in late July 2025, aims to offset the high infrastructure costs associated with running advanced AI models, particularly the expensive GPUs required for training and deployment [3]. The advertisements are integrated into the chatbot’s responses and suggestions, forming part of a broader revenue-generating strategy for X, the social platform formerly known as Twitter [5]. Musk has emphasized that the goal is to ensure Grok remains both functional and profitable, with the CEO stating, “Our focus thus far has just been on making Grok the smartest, most accurate AI in the world and I think we’ve largely succeeded in that. So we’ll turn our attention to how do we pay for those expensive GPUs” [3].
Zepto launches 10-minute medicine delivery service
Quick-commerce platform Zepto has launched a pharmacy service that promises to deliver medicines within 10 minutes, co-founder and CEO Aadit Palicha announced on LinkedIn.
The service, called Zepto Pharmacy, is now live in select areas of Mumbai, Delhi NCR, Bengaluru, and Hyderabad.
“Today, we’re formally announcing the launch of Zepto Pharmacy – Medicines delivered in 10 minutes,” Palicha wrote. He said the company spent 12 months refining the service before rollout and would prioritise operational standards over rapid expansion.
Zepto enters a market currently dominated by Tata 1MG, PharmEasy, Apollo Pharmacy, and Wellness Forever.
X’s New Aesthetic Score Forces Advertisers to Prioritize Design Over Performance
X’s new aesthetic score changes the rules of online advertising. For the first time, a major platform has made ad design a direct factor in pricing. The platform will now charge advertisers more if their ads look “spammy” or messy, even if they perform well. This goes beyond standard moderation or engagement-based algorithms; it turns subjective style preferences into economic levers.
Other platforms like Meta and Google have long deprioritized poor creatives. But they usually let performance decide what works. X, on the other hand, wants advertisers to fall in line with its visual playbook before the ad even runs.
MakeMyTrip launches AI-enabled travel agent Myra
Online travel booking platform MakeMyTrip has introduced an AI-powered virtual travel agent that can guide users through every step of their journey on the website, from trip planning and booking to handling post-sales queries such as cancellations and refunds, via both voice and text.
Users can ask complex and open-ended queries in the realm of travel in Hindi or English like “Where can I go in August for a relaxing holiday with my kids?,” or “I want to go to south India to cover Madurai, Rameswaram, Kovalam, Kodaikanal. Can you suggest me the best route? But I don’t want to travel via flight”.
The virtual assistant Myra is built on a network of specialised AI agents across all major travel categories, flights, accommodation, holidays, ground transport, visas, and forex. It supports multimodal input (text, voice, image, video), continuous back-and-forth dialogue, itinerary edits, and post-sales support — all within the same interface.
Brands triple Q-comm ad spends as platforms turn full-funnel powerhouses
With Q-comm’s ad revenue projected to cross ₹5,000 crore by end-2025, it’s fast becoming a core pillar of digital media plans, say experts
https://www.exchange4media.com/digital-news/brands-triple-q-comm-ad-spends-as-platforms-turn-full-funnel-powerhouses-146097.html
Brands triple Q-comm ad spends as platforms turn full-funnel powerhouses.
Happy Independence Day!
Wishing you a very Happy Independence Day and hoping you have a lovely, long weekend that comes with it.
Watch the JK Lakshmi Cement Independence Day Films
We are sharing two films done in recent years for our amazing client JK Lakshmi Cement which could move and inspire you.
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=aeac4q7AHR0
https://youtu.be/cqWgfx5BpH8?si=QttIxoK7X7cZBSru
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