Advertising in Asia is being rebuilt around commerce, creators and AI. Douyin and TikTok turned short video into a shopping channel, live-commerce agencies and affiliate networks now sit between brands and creators, and AI is starting to change how media is planned and bought. For brands and agencies, the question is no longer just where to buy reach, but how attention turns into a sale.
This hub collects Digital in Asia’s coverage of advertising, adtech and the creator economy: the platforms, the economics of creators and live commerce, and how ad buying is changing.
The new ad stack
- How Ads, Commerce and AI are Converging in Asia
How Asia's $311B ad market, $2.3T commerce engine, and $102B AI layer are merging into a single integrated digital stack — and who controls it. - What is AI-Native Ad Buying in 2026? Inside the New Asian Marketing Stack
AI-native ad buying is replacing the old playbook. How execution became a core capability and why strategy, creative, and media operations are separating. - Agentic Commerce and the Future of E-Commerce Demand
What happens to brands, sellers, and platforms when AI agents control product discovery and purchasing — and who captures value in this new world.
Platforms
- Douyin Advertising in China: How Its Ad and Commerce Ecosystem Works
Douyin generated USD 39.2 billion in ad revenue in 2024, making it China's largest ad platform. ByteDance commands 25.9% of China's digital ad market. Here's how the ad stack actually … - ByteDance’s Global Business: TikTok, Douyin, Commerce and AI
ByteDance Beijing: $550B private valuation after Feb 2026 General Atlantic stake sale. $186B FY24 revenue and TikTok's US restructure. - Tencent: $603B Tech Giant Connecting 1.4B Users
Tencent tech giant: $603B market cap, 1.4B WeChat users, and a gaming + fintech + AI stack defining Chinese digital. - Naver: How Korea’s Search Giant Built a Platform Empire
Naver platform empire: how Korea's search giant turned 23 trillion won Q4 2025 payments into a fintech, e-commerce and content stack.
Creators, live & social commerce
- Asia’s Creator Economy: How TikTok, Douyin and YouTube Creators Make Money
How Asian creator economy monetization works through livestream gifting, affiliate commerce, brand deals, and platform subsidies — and why the model differs from the West. - How Live Commerce Works: Douyin vs TikTok 2026
China live commerce is clearing $1 trillion a year — and it is not QVC on a phone. How the closed-loop system works, and why Douyin is years ahead of TikTok. - The Economics of Southeast Asia’s Live-Commerce Agencies and Affiliate Networks
TikTok Shop's SEA GMV doubled to $45.6B in 2025 — run largely by MCN agencies. How the creator-support layer between platforms and sellers actually works. - Southeast Asia’s Social Commerce Market: Platforms, Growth and Economics
Social commerce grew from <5% to 20-25% of SEA e-commerce in 3 years. We explain the 31.4% CAGR reshaping retail.
Gaming & mobile advertising
- Gaming Monetisation in Asia: Advertising, In-App Purchases and Hybrid Models
Inside the mechanics of Asia's $90B gaming market — gacha, battle passes, hybrid monetisation, and why the playbook exports globally. - UGC Gaming in Asia 2026: Roblox, Fortnite & Zepeto
Asia does not just export games — it builds inside them. Roblox India users grew 110%, Korea Zepeto has 400M users, and UEFN has paid out $1B+. - How Do Mobile-First Economies in Asia Leapfrog Desktop in 2026? A Comprehensive Analysis
Mobile-first Asia leapfrog: 660M Indians skipped desktop. Why mobile-first Asia rewrote how digital economies work.