As Super Bowl LVIII approaches, brands are gearing up to showcase their most creative and innovative ads to capture the attention of over 200 million viewers. With ads costing a record-breaking $7 million for just 30 seconds of airtime, expectations are high to make a bold impression.
Among the slew of car companies, food and beverage brands, entertainment services, and more vying for our eyeballs, a subtle but growing trend is emerging – ads highlighting artificial intelligence (AI) capabilities and applications.
Rather than focusing solely on the technology itself, many brands are subtly integrating AI into their broader messaging. For example, sports drink maker Bodyarmor is unveiling new flavors through a commercial developed with the help of AI. The ad playfully uses the technology to validate the authenticity of the updated recipes.
Other companies, especially big tech players like Microsoft and Google, take a more direct approach to promoting their latest AI offerings. Microsoft’s ad for its Copilot feature presents how AI can seamlessly integrate across devices and apps to boost productivity. Meanwhile, Google’s commercial for its Pixel 8 phone demonstrates the real-life accessibility benefits enabled by AI-powered tools.
Beyond the tech world, brands in industries like cybersecurity and online marketplaces are also embracing AI themes. Crowdstrike’s ad incorporates AI to showcase effective defense from cyber attacks. Etsy’s commercial features AI-generated images to exhibit a range of unique handmade items on its site.
What these ads indicate is that rather than AI being an alienating or overwhelming concept and marketing ploy, companies are presenting the technology as relatable, helpful, and empowering. The practicality takes center stage over the complexity in many cases. Microsoft’s approach typifies this by focusing ad messaging on AI’s tangible impacts on enhancing people’s creativity and efficiency in their everyday tasks.
So exactly how prominent will AI be in this year’s collection of Super Bowl ads? After doing some calculations, we estimated that the percentage of 2024 Super Bowl ads related to artificial intelligence this weekend would be somewhere around 5%.
The exact percentage is difficult to calculate since not all ads are released in advance, but even if 1 in 20 commercials were about AI, it would be a pretty interesting thing to see.
Looking back to a year or two, it does not appear that any of them were specifically focused on artificial intelligence. The ads covered a wide range of topics, from electric vehicles to streaming services to consumer products, but none have an AI theme.
But this year, examples from Bodyarmor, Microsoft, Google, and other brands foreshadow AI’s clear, if subtle, integration into commercial messaging. These companies know what’s coming – and want to be the first ones to talk about it.
Rather than sci-fi hype, brands want viewers to see AI as an accessible tool that can enhance everyday experiences and tasks right now. And the brands hope that their lighthearted, practical AI messaging will emotionally resonate with over 200 million Super Bowl viewers. I’m looking forward to this Sunday for sure
