This week on Ad Age Insider's Weekly Report: Starbucks leans into culture over explanation with its 'Pink Energy' platform, built around the fan-favorite Pink Drink. Gary Vaynerchuk takes a personal stake in affiliate marketing agency Paul Street. Forward deployed engineers are embedding directly in agencies for AI development. Bayer tests predictive AI targeting that outperforms standard demand-side platform benchmarks. And the 2026 Emmy nominees for Outstanding Commercial include Apple, Nike, Adidas, Coinbase and Levi's.

Host Parker Herren breaks down what each story means for marketers navigating AI adoption, affiliate marketing growth and culture-first branding. Subscribe for weekly industry news roundups, plus biweekly deep-dive conversations with Ad Age reporters.

Dig deeper on the topics mentioned in this week's episode:

~Starbucks builds a summer platform around Pink Drink

~Gary Vaynerchuk on why he's investing in an affiliate marketing agency

~How brands get more from AI with forward-deployed engineers

~How Bayer's head of media is using AI-powered predictive targeting and navigating AI search

~Adidas, Apple, Coinbase, Levi's and Nike earn Emmy nominations for best ad