Reuters: Meta is on track to become the world’s biggest digital ad company, with $243.46B in 2026 ad revenue versus Google’s projected $239.54B. Digital ads reward whichever platform can turn huge amounts of user behavior into cheap, effective, automated campaign results for brands. Meta’s edge is Advantage+, a system that automates ad targeting, creative testing, budget allocation, and placement, which means advertisers do less manual setup and often get better return from the same spending. That is a strong fit for modern ad buyers because they increasingly want fewer knobs to manage and faster performance feedback across Instagram, Facebook, Reels, WhatsApp, and Threads. Google still owns an enormous ad machine, but much of its strength sits in search ads, where growth is steadier, while Meta is growing faster by expanding more aggressively across social feeds, short video, and messaging. eMarketer says Meta’s ad business is expected to grow 24.1% this year, up from 22.1% in 2025, while Google is projected to grow 11.9%, which is the real reason the gap flips. --- reuters .com/business/media-telecom/meta-poised-surpass-google-digital-ad-revenue-first-time-report-says-2026-04-13/