Google and Meta’s Controversial Teen Ad Targeting Project Revealed

• Written by Kiara Fabbri Former Tech News Writer
• Fact-Checked by Justyn Newman Former Lead Cybersecurity Editor

Today, the Financial Times (FT) revealed a secret collaboration between Google and Meta. The two tech giants, worked together on a marketing initiative to target Instagram ads at teenagers on YouTube. This effort bypassed Google’s own restrictions on advertising to minors.

According to the FT, the project aimed to promote Instagram to 13- to 17-year-old YouTube users by directing ads to a category labeled “unknown.” This category, while broad, was known to disproportionately include younger users, thereby sidestepping Google’s policies that prohibit targeting ads to under-18s based on demographics.

The two Silicon Valley giants, typically fierce rivals as the top two online advertising platforms, began this joint effort late last year, as reported by the FT. This initiative was part of a broader strategy to address declining ad revenues for Google, and to combat Meta’s challenges in retaining younger users, amid rising competition from TikTok.

Google stated, ” We prohibit ads being personalised to people under-18, period.” Despite this, the Financial Times points out that the company did not deny using the “unknown” loophole, stating, “We’ll also be taking additional action to reinforce with sales representatives that they must not help advertisers or agencies run campaigns attempting to work around our policies.”

Meta defended its actions, stating that selecting the “ unknown ” audience did not constitute a violation of rules. However, It did not answer inquiries regarding whether the staff knew that the “unknown” group had a younger age demographic.

The controversy unfolds as the U.S. Senate recently passed the Kids Online Safety Act, aimed at bolstering online protections for children. Concurrently, the Justice Department and Federal Trade Commission (FTC) have filed a lawsuit against TikTok , alleging violations of the Children’s Online Privacy Protection Act.

This controversy underscores a growing scrutiny on how major tech companies manage and manipulate data, particularly concerning vulnerable demographics like minors. The ongoing developments in this case could set important precedents for how online platforms handle and safeguard user data.

Photo by Tim Mossholder on Unsplash

ByteDance Launches AI Video Creator To Compete Against OpenAI’s Sora

• Written by Andrea Miliani Former Tech News Expert
• Fact-Checked by Justyn Newman Former Lead Cybersecurity Editor

TikTok’s parent company, ByteDance, launched a new AI tool called Jimeng AI that can generate videos from text prompts this week. ByteDance joins the competition to create the best text-to-video software against companies like OpenAI with Sora, and Canva.

According to Reuters , Jimeng AI has been developed by another ByteDance company, Faceu Technology, and is already available for Android—released earlier on July 31— and now iOS in China.

In the region, Jimeng AI will be competing against another text-to-video model called Kling AI, released last month by one of China’s largest video apps Kuaishou. This model is already available worldwide and users just need to share an email to register. Another competitor is Ying—also released last month— by the Chinese startup Zhipu AI.

Jimeng AI is not free. Users can pay 69 yuan—around $9.50— for a monthly subscription, 79 yuan—around $11— for just one month, or 659 yuan—around $92— for a year. On its website , the company features realistic animations of jellyfish swimming and funny clips like a Zebra with sunglasses underwater and a rock band of astronauts playing music on the moon.

In the U.S. Sora— released earlier this year — has already been making an impact even in Hollywood for its impressive video results. Toys R’ Us created its first AI commercial using the AI tool, becoming the first brand to do this in June.

According to TechRadar , Jimeng AI—which translates to “dream” in English— the AI-video tool could be a big threat to Sora as the company is linked to the popular TikTok app. Its capabilities and app connections are yet to be seen, but its quick expansion could develop soon if they extend the app to other territories especially considering that Sora is not available to the public yet.

ByteDance is still under the U.S. government’s radar during the legal dispute and bill to ban TikTok in the country. The Justice Department and Federal Trade Commission (FTC) also filed a lawsuit last week against Tiktok for violating children’s privacy.