October 24, 2025
This week in tech, OpenAI launched ChatGPT Atlas, a browser that blends AI chat, search, and browsing, with a sidebar that can summarize pages and an “Agent Mode” that can navigate sites for you. Google revamped voice search with a new AI model that understands spoken queries directly, delivering faster, smarter results. Reddit sued Perplexity and others for scraping its content to train AI, aiming to stop unauthorized use. Meanwhile, Google shut down its long-delayed Privacy Sandbox, keeping cookies for now and leaving true privacy-focused ads still out of reach.
OpenAI launches ChatGPT Atlas browser
OpenAI has launched ChatGPT Atlas, a new web browser with ChatGPT built right in. It’s available now for macOS, with Windows, iOS, and Android versions coming soon. Atlas combines AI chat, search, and browsing in one place, letting users ask questions, browse pages, and view links, images, and videos all in the same window.
The browser includes an AI sidebar that can summarize pages, rewrite text, or help with tasks. A new “Agent Mode” can even open tabs and perform actions for you, though it’s still in testing. Atlas also adds privacy controls and memory settings so users can choose what ChatGPT sees and remembers.
Google upgrades voice search with new AI model
Google announced a major upgrade to its voice search, powered by a new AI model called Speech-to-Retrieval (S2R). Unlike the old system that turned speech into text first, this new approach understands the meaning of what you say directly and finds the most relevant results faster.
Google says this makes voice search more natural, accurate, and useful across different languages. The update is already live, marking a new era in how people search , moving from keyword matching to real understanding of spoken intent.
Reddit sues Perplexity and others over data scraping
Reddit has filed a lawsuit against Perplexity AI, SerpApi, and two other companies, accusing them of scraping Reddit data from Google search results without permission. Reddit says the firms disguised their bots to collect huge amounts of content and use it to train AI systems.
The platform already has paid data deals with OpenAI and Google but claims these companies tried to bypass its rules. Reddit is seeking damages and a permanent ban on the use of its data. The case could shape how AI companies gather and use online content in the future.
Google officially ends its privacy sandbox project
Google has officially shut down its long-delayed Privacy Sandbox, ending a five-year effort to replace third-party cookies with privacy-focused ad tools. The company confirmed it will retire ten remaining Sandbox APIs, including Topics, Protected Audience, and Attribution Reporting, for both Chrome and Android. The move follows Google’s earlier decision to keep third-party cookies active after struggling to gain industry adoption.
For advertisers, this means business as usual: cookies stay, and campaigns won’t face new disruptions for now. However, it also highlights that the ad industry still lacks a true privacy-safe alternative. Google says it will keep improving Chrome and Android privacy features, but without the Sandbox branding. After years of testing and debate, the web’s advertising model looks set to continue much as before , familiar, functional, but still far from fully private.
Stay tuned for next week's digital marketing highlights!
A quick recap of the latest and most important trends, insights, and news shaping the digital marketing landscape, see you next week.
Intern Content Marketing
Marija is a 21-year-old content marketing intern in Zwolle, originally from Lithuania. She’s in her final year of a Creative Business bachelor’s at NHL Stenden University. She loves writing and creating content for social media, but she’s also curious about the bigger world of digital marketing and enjoys picking up new skills along the way. Maria’s international background makes her adaptable and open-minded, always ready to bring fresh ideas to every project. Outside of work, Maria loves animals. She’s more of a cat person, but she also likes dogs, so she feels right at home in our dog-friendly office :)
