The Super Bowl ads this year left a lot to be desired, especially those heavily reliant on AI generation. It's a controversial take, but the truth is, these ads failed to showcase the potential of AI in a compelling way.
While AI-generated commercials have been around for a while, this year's Super Bowl saw an overload of them. The reason? Advanced image and video generation models have improved, giving brands the confidence to associate their names with AI-derived content. But here's where it gets tricky: the quality of these ads left much to be desired, and the cost of a 30-second spot was a whopping $8-10 million!
One of the worst offenders was the Artlist ad, which boasted about its ability to create Super Bowl-worthy content in just a week. However, the ad featured a series of short, disjointed clips of animals doing odd things, lacking any innovation or a compelling story. It felt more like a threat than a promise, leaving viewers uninspired.
Then there's the Svedka vodka ad, which resurrected its Fembot CGI character and introduced a new Brobot companion. The ad was almost entirely AI-generated, and while Sazerac's CMO claimed it saved time and money, the result was questionable. The Brobot character, inspired by I, Robot's Sonny, malfunctioned after drinking vodka, spilling liquid down its chassis. It's a far cry from the pro-human message Sazerac aimed for.
The Comcast Xfinity ad, featuring digitally de-aged stars from Jurassic Park, also sparked speculation. People questioned whether AI was used, with some comparing it to AI slop. Similarly, Dunkin's ad, "Good Will Dunkin'," divided opinions online, with many wondering if AI was behind the de-aging process.
The Pepsi Zero Sugar ad, with its CGI polar bear (a Coca-Cola mascot), took a jab at Coca-Cola's controversial AI-generated holiday ads. Pepsi's VP emphasized the human touch, but the ad's reliance on the "animals doing weird stuff" trope left a sour taste.
These AI-generated ads aimed to normalize the technology, but instead, they left viewers questioning the authenticity and quality. The true purpose of a Super Bowl ad is to create a positive, exciting association with a product, and these ads fell short.
So, the question remains: Is it AI? Does it matter? And can AI ever truly capture the essence of a brand without human creativity?
