We’ve just witnessed an AI-themed Super Bowl, folks.
While audiences were keyed in on the yearly championship game, the highlight wasn’t solely the Eagles’ dominant victory or Kendrick Lamar’s performance of his hit diss track during halftime. A significant focus also revolved around how AI emerged as a recurring theme in numerous high-budget commercials.
From OpenAI’s inaugural Super Bowl advertisement to Google’s Gemini chatbot sharing interesting cheese trivia, here’s a rundown of noteworthy moments from this year’s Super Bowl commercials.
OpenAI
OpenAI made its Super Bowl advertising premiere, aiming to introduce ChatGPT to a broader audience. This marks the company’s first significant move into high-profile marketing, featuring animations in a pointillism style, where black and white dots symbolize pivotal historical events, such as the creation of the lightbulb, the moon landing, and the first email, all culminating in the rise of generative AI.
The ad conveys a powerful message: extraordinary accomplishments are often initiated by a single action. The reception, however, was mixed; many viewers expressed disappointment, while others praised it. It’s understandable, given that OpenAI tends to evoke strong opinions.
The Game Day advertisement follows the company’s recent rebranding, which includes a fresh logo and typography aimed at repositioning its identity within a competitive tech environment. In a new video introducing the rebrand, OpenAI continues to utilize the black dot design theme.
Naturally, Google seized the moment to showcase its Gemini chatbot to millions of football enthusiasts on Sunday. The advertisement illustrates a father’s adventure using the AI tool as he balances preparing for a crucial job interview with parenting and imparting essential life lessons.
This ad had a heartwarming tone, contrasting with a 30-second spot by Google that was released on YouTube just 11 days earlier and stirred a bit of controversy.
That earlier promotional video, set in a Wisconsin cheese shop, aimed to illustrate how small enterprises leverage AI within Google Workspace. However, according to user Nate Hake on X, the original version had to be revised following an inaccurate fact presented by the Gemini chatbot. Initially, it claimed that gouda cheese represented 50% to 60% of global cheese consumption. Although Google’s cloud app president, Jerry Dischler, responded to Hake that this wasn’t a hallucination as it was sourced from cheese.com, many believe the figure was exaggerated. The YouTube video now appears to have been modified to exclude this statistic.
Although it seems common for advertisements to undergo adjustments, it’s significant that a major tech firm like Google made such a prominent mistake. It serves as a reminder that AI can sometimes misconstrue facts, and even large corporations aren’t immune to errors.
Meta
Meta’s advertisement featured the Ray-Ban Meta smart glasses, showcasing stars Chris Hemsworth, Chris Pratt, and Kris Jenner as they navigate an art gallery. While Pratt inquires about the artwork using the AI-enabled glasses, Hemsworth munches on an extravagant banana, a nod to Justin Sun, the Tron founder who infamously bought a $6.2 million art piece that was merely a banana taped to a wall.
The Super Bowl ad tapped into the appeal of these well-known personalities to promote its AI wearables, likely aiming to resonate more with the audience. Reportedly, CEO Mark Zuckerberg informed employees in a leaked meeting that over 1 million Ray-Ban Meta glasses were sold in 2024.
Salesforce
In Salesforce’s Super Bowl advertisement, the company illustrates how “AI was intended to be.” The ad stars Matthew McConaughey, known for “Interstellar,” as he navigates through the busy Heathrow Airport. After booking his flight online, he unexpectedly faces a last-minute gate change, prompting a frantic dash to catch his plane. Perhaps had he employed Agentforce, Salesforce’s platform for developing autonomous AI agents, he could have avoided the stress.
GoDaddy
GoDaddy presented its AI product, “Airo,” in its Game Day slot. This tool aims to assist small businesses in crafting professional-quality logos, web designs, and marketing materials for social media.
The advertisement features actor Walton Goggins, who demonstrates how he utilizes Airo to build a website for his own line of goggles, humorously branded as Goggins goggles. In the commercial, Goggins quips that while actors excel at pretending, small business owners can do just as well by deferring to AI, emphasizing that expertise isn’t a necessity if you have the right tools.
Cirkul
Water bottle manufacturer Cirkul aimed playful satire at AI in its Super Bowl advertisement. The commercial features actor Adam Devine, who tries to order a Cirkul water bottle with the help of an AI assistant, only to have the tech misinterpret his request and end up ordering a staggering 100,000 bottles, humorously illustrating the unpredictable outcomes of depending on technology for everyday tasks.
Additionally, the ad announces that Cirkul plans to give away 100,000 complimentary bottles to viewers of the game.
Aside from the major tech companies advertising during the 2025 Super Bowl, several startups also seized the opportunity, including fintech company Ramp, which counts Philadelphia Eagles’ running back Saquon Barkley among its investors.
Compiled by Techarena.au.
Fanpage: TechArena.au
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