The US and Europe might be far apart when it comes to how and when to regulate artificial intelligence, but according to new data from Morning Consult, consumer sentiment in both regions is more or less aligned.

Surveys conducted in the US, France, Germany, Italy, Spain, and the UK in June and July highlighted consumer apprehension: Only 32% of US consumers and between 26% and 35% of European consumers said they believed AI technologies could be “easily controlled,” and similar numbers said they believed AI would be developed “responsibly.”

At the same time, 52% of US consumers and 41%–61% of surveyed European consumers said “AI is the future of technology.”

Regulatory efforts are popular with a majority of consumers: 55% of US consumers and 58% to 66% of European consumers supported “heavy government regulation of AI development.”

Morning Consult lead tech analyst Jordan Marlatt said the alignment between the two regions on government regulation is one of the most interesting takeaways from the data.

Keep reading here.—MA

The race between Google and Microsoft to commercialize the latest AI advances still dominated the companies’ earnings calls this week—and both outperformed analyst expectations.

Executives and analysts mentioned the term “AI” at least 90 times in the course of Alphabet’s hour-long broadcast (there were 19 in the same quarter’s transcript last year), while Microsoft’s call included more than 70 references to the technology.

The continued focus on the tech comes as Microsoft invests in generative AI—including a blockbuster partnership with OpenAI—to fuel growth in its Azure cloud services, Office software suite, and newly reinvigorated Bing search engine. Google, meantime, is positioning its competing Bard chatbot to defend its place as the dominant name in search and make it easier for advertisers to create and target messaging.

While Q2 earnings and revenue reported by each company surpassed predictions from analysts polled by Zacks Investment Research, investors seem to have picked a clear favorite in post-earnings trading. Alphabet’s stock rose around 6% the day after the news, while Microsoft dipped around 4%.

Keep reading here.—PK

Xandr, the ad-tech platform acquired by Microsoft in 2021, is getting out of political advertising later this year.

The company has updated its political advertising policy page, forbidding ads for “election-related content including election canvassing and election polls, political parties, candidates, and ballot measures.”

It also outlined other types of political advertising that aren’t allowed, like “fundraising for political candidates, parties, PACs, and ballot measures.”

Clients were informed of the change in an email, which also announced updated policies that restrict or disallow advertising around topics including alcohol and gambling in specific markets, as well as tobacco and vaping. Changes go into effect in September and October.

Microsoft-owned LinkedIn also prohibits political ads, according to its advertising policy website.

As Google and Meta have cracked down on political advertising—both companies announced restrictions on targeting, including political affiliation, in recent years—many political advertisers have turned to the open web and programmatic advertising to reach voters.

Jake Sticka, a partner at the political ad agency Rising Tide Interactive that uses Xandr, told Marketing Brew that, among other things, platforms that accept political advertising “have to be prepared to ensure that the folks running the ads are legitimate advertisers. And I understand that there is work that goes into that.”

As for why platforms are cracking down on political advertising, he said it could be because they “don’t want to be in a position where they’re refereeing between the accuracy of the ads that they’re running and the political environment, in general.”

Keep reading here.—RB

Stat: Up to 50.5%. That’s how much the advertised range of a Tesla EV can drop in cold weather, Reuters reported, citing data from the Korea Fair Trade Commission.

Quote: “It seems as if he’s going to build a grab bag of different functions and ram it through the user base.”—tech entrepreneur Chris Messina, to the New York Times, on Elon Musk’s attempt to turn Twitter (or X or whatever) into an “everything app”

Read: Lindsey Graham and Elizabeth Warren: When it comes to Big Tech, enough is enough (the New York Times)

Links we love: You’ve got the goals—and now it’s time to build the road map and get your team on board. Our Strategic Planning can teach you how to do just that. Register here.

Usually, we write about the business of tech. Here, we highlight the *tech* of tech.

Electric excursions: Eyeing an EV? News keeps dropping that makes the switch seem sound. Seven automakers—GM, Honda, and BMW among them—are teaming up to drop 30,000 chargers across North America in 2024, Ars Technica reported.

Shein gunning for Amazon: The Information reported that Shein—the Singapore-based fast-fashion e-commerce outlet most recently in the news for hiring influencers to paper over allegations of human rights abuses and environmentally damaging practices—is “trying to recruit US brands that are already big on Amazon and Shopify, part of its plan to transform into an online ‘everything store.’” As consumers, perhaps we should be asking if it should even be possible to receive a shirt by mail for $4.