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Apple says it’s bringing ads to its Maps app this summer

That could be another boon for its fast-growing, high-margin Services division.

3/25/26 11:01AM

Apple Maps users just trying to find their way in the world might find their paths a little more cluttered by paid suggestions this summer, as Apple has announced new plans to introduce ads into its Maps app.

Through a new free platform called Apple Business, available in more than 200 countries and regions starting April 14, Apple will allow retailers to buy priority placements in search queries and its new “Suggested Places” list in the app — and US and Canadian users can expect to see the sponsored spots crop up by summertime. Rival Google Maps, which Apple has been contending with for years, introduced a similar suggestion-based bidding system back in 2013.

The move is just another part in Apple’s push to squeeze advertising sales from its apps and services, having added advertising slots within the App Store, Apple TV, and Apple News in recent years. Those efforts have been paying off, helping to boost margins in the company’s Services division to an eye-popping 75% — more than double the margin it ekes out from the Products segment, home to its iPhones, iPads, Macs, and other devices.

Yes, while Products brought in almost $200 billion more in sales than Apple’s Services last year, there was only a little over $30 billion worth of difference between the divisions’ gross margin figures.

Apple service segment chart — Sherwood News

The App Store remains at the core of Apple’s Services business, with some ~$20 billion in annual revenue, thanks to the cash it takes from in-app purchases and the controversial “Apple tax” — the 15% to 30% commission the platform pockets from paid downloads. At the same time, the iCloud+ storage subscription — which a whopping 70% of recent US Apple device buyers paid for in Q4 2025, per CIRP estimations — chips in, alongside subscription and advertising revenues from News, Music, TV, etc.

Think different?

Apple, broadly conspicuous by its absence from the rest of Big Tech’s unending AI spending party, has cashed in on the craze in other ways, with reports that the company is expected to make $1 billion in App Store fees this year just from other companies’ generative-AI apps.

Maybe with the buffer of having just posted its best quarter for iPhone sales on record, and an increasing cash pile mounting behind its ultra-profitable Services division, Apple might not completely mind being left out of some parts of the AI journey — especially if it can just ask Maps for some paid recommendations along the way.

Millie Giles6/11/26

JM Smucker says it sold $1 billion worth of Uncrustables in FY2026

After years of booming sandwich sales, JM Smucker has finally earned a billion-dollar crust.

On Tuesday, the company reported results for fiscal year 2026, highlighting better-than-expected profits driven by higher prices for coffee and sweet baked goods. However, at another point on the earnings call, CEO Mark Smucker pointed to one particularly jammy figure: in line with previous forecasts, the company sold $1 billion worth of its (almost always) crustless sandwiches, Uncrustables, in the last year alone.

Max Knoblauch6/8/26

Paramount reportedly offers concessions to resolve multistate antitrust investigation

Paramount has reportedly offered up some concessions in an effort to prevent an antitrust lawsuit by California and about 10 other states, according to Bloomberg reporting on Monday.

Reuters first reported on the potential suit from a group of unnamed states last week, which could throw a wrench in Paramount’s plans to buy rival Warner Bros. Discovery in a Hollywood megamerger.

The list of concessions is unknown, though Bloomberg previously reported that Paramount is open to divesting some of its kids TV assets to appease EU regulators.

Late last month, reports said US regulators appeared likely to approve the $110 billion merger, following a meeting between Paramount CEO David Ellison and DOJ antitrust staffers.

Paramount Offers Concessions to Head Off State Antitrust Lawsuit

The list of concessions is unknown, though Bloomberg previously reported that Paramount is open to divesting some of its kids TV assets to appease EU regulators.

Late last month, reports said US regulators appeared likely to approve the $110 billion merger, following a meeting between Paramount CEO David Ellison and DOJ antitrust staffers.

$98B ⛽

Max Knoblauch6/8/26

The IATA released its latest financial outlook for the airline industry over the weekend, forecasting a $98 billion jump in the sector’s collective fuel bill. The world’s largest trade group representing airlines expects the oil spike to halve profits by 49% from last year to $23 billion.

The group also expects profit margins to halve year over year, falling from 2025’s 4.2% to 2%. Still, revenue is expected to climb to $1.17 trillion from $1.07 trillion.

A surge in the cost of jet fuel has rocked US and global airlines this year, leading Delta Air Lines, United Airlines, American Airlines, Southwest Airlines, JetBlue, and others to raise fares and ancillary charges like bag fees. Low-cost carriers, which operate on smaller margins, have been squeezed the hardest, resulting in Spirit’s shutdown.

“It’s a tough year for all airlines, especially those whose balance sheets had not yet recovered from COVID. And, of course, for those operating in the Gulf,” said IATA Director General Willie Walsh, who added that demand is holding up and about half of passengers expect to spend more on travel this year. “That bodes well for a strong northern summer peak season. The big unknown is how long travelers and shippers can tolerate the higher costs of connectivity.”

Hollywood Exteriors And Landmarks - 2025

1 year into the Switch 2, we might’ve seen the top of the console market

The Switch 2 launched on this day in 2025. Amid a rough year for consoles, Nintendo has logged a good one.

Max Knoblauch6/5/26

Max Knoblauch6/4/26

GM has reportedly rehired more than 100 former Cruise employees, 18 months after shuttering the robotaxi unit

GM has rehired more than 100 employees it let go early last year when it shuttered Cruise, its former robotaxi business, according to reporting by The Information.

The hiring spree, which also includes employees from Nvidia and Uber, is geared toward ramping up GM’s plans for personal-use self-driving vehicles and not robotaxis. The former had been the focus of Cruise, prior to GM shuttering it in 2024.

Reporting last fall revealed that GM was attempting to rehire some former Cruise employees, but the scope of that effort wasn’t clear. More than 1,000 employees were laid off when the automaker scrapped Cruise, which it invested $10 billion into.

Google’s Waymo, Cruise’s former chief rival, is now worth $126 billion after a $16 billion funding round earlier this year. The company says it’s serving 500,000 paid robotaxi rides per week in the US.