Hey Must Readers, January went quickly, didn’t it!

Here’s a mix of must read articles and videos to inform how you shape the next few months. Thanks for reading & let’s dive in.

Here’s a snapshot look at the top apps downloaded in December in the US in Q4. If you notice, there is a trend: utility apps and social apps dominate the downloads & usage, not specifically AI apps. I make this point as there is a huge thing made about AI, but this shows how, despite AI features being baked in, people want to be connected and what features they want to use their most personal devices for.

Once we see this shift to Gemini, ChatGPT etc or AI truly becomes baked in Android and iOS we will see AI be the work tool, not the personal tool. With this all being said AI is the next platform so please go explore & experiement and if you’re struggling let me know I have plenty to help you progress with

Here’s an exclusive preview from my AI podcast The AI Moment.
We had Geoff Gibbins from Human Machines on and gave us a breakdown of agentic commerce, and I turned the lessons into a dedicated checklist, so here’s an exclusive copy before it goes live on the pod - https://docs.google.com/document/d/1fQz_FDaWKOC9SUO5D2wXBxAyAVjsBIi9zKb9pLkDtvM/edit?usp=sharing

I'm not one to judge, but this unlisted YouTube video is an interesting, expensive trend, a realistic baby toy setting you back $10k.

So if you are looking for someone to help you grow your business or get you back on track, I’m here to help you (through Marketing, Product, Growth & AI).
Get in touch by hitting reply (or here’s my LinkedIn)

One of my favourite clients shared this with me, and it’s a fascinating look at selling a specific sweet onion on the internet. It always pays to read interesting articles like this to understand how unique products can sell online

Whoop got banned from the Australian Open tournament this week, this is a good look at why/how the fitness band got banned from tennis’ first major (it was approved pre-event by the tennis governing body) and why Whoop is kicking back.

Here is how Whoop responded to the AO and created a body collection. This is an example of Agile Marketing & Product that will capture the tennis and sports world.

What happened to infamous footballer (soccer player) David Batty? He was most known for missing a penalty and being a well-known hard man.
Here’s a great look inside his football career & why he happily disappeared

Are our attention spans really shot, or is it something else? Here’s the science behind it and how we could rethink consuming empty calorie content (when was the last time you remember the details of a good TikTok video)

An .ai domain costs £80/$100, a domain can’t still have a big impact, can it? It can, and it does… One of my favourite reports recently is the dot AI domain - generating huge revenue for Angilla. The AI boom is going nowhere and will help to keep a small island building out its economy

Something you might have seen is an explosion of Jellycat content across the web, which is deliberate, moving from boutique shops & card stores to major outlets, it’s created a large cult following by leveraging the kidults trend and spread from the UK to China. A good reminder that something you don’t always understand can become huge with the right Marketing & cultural push

Via a friend of Must Reads, Chris H, do you think social and video editing is now easy, try being a DJ’s videographer - it’s a huge no thanks from me (I appreciate your work thou, videographers)

This is a great watch for any parent or anyone confused by kidspeak.
I have to admit he did a great job (thankfully)

Europeans have seen a pop-up on Instagram suggesting an ad-free experience for a monthly price. It is no surprise, however, many don’t understand why, so here’s why…Meta’s ad business is huge (Reels alone is $50b business) and they need diversification away from ads (subs is the natural way) - the question for many is why would you pay for your privacy.
For context: Meta made $200B in revenue in 2025

Here is my favourite breakdown of how WhatsApp took over the communications world. WhatsApp's future is more entertainment consumption and more chat. WhatsApp's next play will be premium features and a move towards paid communities and interactions with your favourite celebrities and creators.
BTW - I was asked why competitors struggle against WhatsApp, minus switching costs (the pain to try and get people to move to another app) - try and compete with 3b messages sent a day & those annoying groups giving you FOMO…

Have you been to a store and seen the endless aisle of energy drinks recently? I have spotted it for the last 18 months, and the flavours just don’t stop coming (RIP Prime btw). Here is why the energy drink market is going into more and more flavours, often going into random flavours and heading into the dirty soda trend (which is when they add cream or fruit juice)

Got any questions or comments on any of the Must Reads, or want to chat through Marketing, Growth or AI, get in touch by hitting reply or emailing me.