The AI Promo Brief: Issue #12

Your Trend Radar Just Got Smarter

Most social tools tell you what already happened. Farol listens for what's about to happen. It tracks 500+ influential voices in real time, and when multiple thought leaders start circling the same topic, Farol's AI clusters those signals and alerts you, typically 24-48 hours before the conversation goes mainstream. That's the edge: you're not reacting to trends, you're riding them early. Pick your niches (AI, business, marketing, crypto), and Farol delivers daily alerts with context and ready-to-post drafts. For distributors positioning themselves as forward-thinking or anyone tired of showing up late to the conversation—this is a cool radar.

Your Customers Are Talking. Unwrap Helps You Actually Listen

You've got feedback scattered across surveys, support tickets, reviews, and Slack channels. The problem isn't collecting it—it's making sense of it all. Unwrap.ai tackles this head-on with an AI platform that reads your customer data and surfaces the trends you didn't even know to look for. Founded by former Amazon Alexa engineers, Unwrap now powers customer intelligence for brands like lululemon, JetBlue, and Oura. The platform does the heavy lifting, then routes insights to the right teams before small problems become big ones. For promo pros managing client relationships and sales teams, think of it as having a tireless analyst on staff who actually reads everything—and tells you what matters most.

Still in Vegas? Drop by to see us, booth #2310

PPAI Expo, January 12-15. Find us at Booth #2310 for platform walkthroughs. Breakfast Club's at Libertine Social. We're running conference sessions on AI and maximizing commonsku. Plus happy hours for anyone tired of small talk. Basically, we packed the week with reasons to connect. See the lineup.

Bobby's AI Session at PPAI Expo

At the PPAI Expo on January 12th, our own Chief Content Officer, Bobby Lehew, took the stage to unpack what AI actually looks like when you commit to it. Not theory. Not hype. Real examples from real projects, and how creative tools are changing what's possible when you stop treating AI as a side feature and start weaving it into your entire process. Bobby walked through 10 tools promo pros are using right now, and how to build a team-wide AI strategy that sticks. If you missed it, we've got you covered—you can get access to the deck and the resources Bobby shared here.

Permanent Beta is the New Promotion Path

In a CES fireside, McKinsey’s Bob Sternfels and General Catalyst’s Hemant Taneja basically called time of death on the “learn once, work forever” career model. AI is scaling so fast that Anthropic’s valuation jumped from tens of billions to “a couple hundred billion” in a year, and they’re already talking about the next trillion‑dollar giants. For promo leaders, this isn’t abstract: McKinsey expects as many personalized AI agents as employees by the end of 2026, while shifting 25% more people into client-facing roles and trimming back office by the same amount. Worth a read as you rethink how your team learns and sells!

⚡ If you sometimes need a reality check on just how disruptive AI is to productivity, check out this statement from a Google engineer. A year’s worth of work in an hour? 8.3MM views.

🎬 Editly is like a mini in-house studio: an AI image + video workbench where you can whip up product shots, cut clean backgrounds, and test campaign visuals in minutes.

🤖 Vibe Bot is a rotating camera, AI note-taker, and meeting sidekick that lives on your desk—imagine your Zoom setup got promoted. The Verge has the scoop.

📸 Millions of free AI stock photos on StockCake.

👓 Lenovo just rolled out concept AI glasses at CES that tether to phones or PCs, juggle live translation and notifications, and pack a tiny 2MP camera into lightweight frames.

🪞 Another cool virtual try-on site: veeton

🔮 Reid Hoffman's five AI predictions spell it out: agents will run campaigns and quote projects, AGI will feel like smart interns on demand, and operators who teach AI to read biology, data, and meetings will dominate the next decade. Full interview here.

🔥 Bobby broke down the actual AI playbook at PPAI—10 tools promo pros are using now and how to build a strategy that sticks. Missed it? Grab the deck and resources here.