Inside OpenAI's Super Bowl debut with a $14 million investment.
"This undoubtedly marks the beginning of a new stage."
OpenAI made its debut at the Super Bowl with a 60-second ad that places artificial intelligence alongside the greatest innovations of humanity. The advertisement showcases technological evolution through animation inspired by pointillism, transforming abstract dots into iconic images of progress, from primitive tools like fire and the wheel to modern advancements such as DNA sequencing and space exploration. The ad culminates with modern applications of AI, showing ChatGPT performing everyday tasks like drafting business plans and language tutoring. The cost for this placement in the first half of the event was approximately $14 million.
The ad, developed under the direction of new CMO Kate Rouch, intentionally avoids mentioning terms like AGI or superintelligence, which are central to OpenAI's mission. Instead, it focuses on practical applications. Rouch notes that the intention is for the message to resonate with the Super Bowl audience, which includes tens of millions of people unfamiliar with AI, estimating around 130 million viewers.
During the conception of the ad, OpenAI's Sora AI was used to prototype ideas and explore different visual approaches, but the final animation was created by human artists. Rouch clarifies that this is a celebration of human creativity and an extension of that same creativity, highlighting the decision not to use AI-generated content in the final product.
This campaign comes at what OpenAI considers a crucial moment, as Rouch mentions that "we are at the dawn of the age of intelligence" and that "you can participate today." This statement refers to a recent blog by Sam Altman, the company's CEO. The company seeks a valuation of $300 billion and projects revenues of $11.6 billion for this year, making the Super Bowl ad an attempt to capture America’s attention at a time when competition is intensifying.
Expectations are high, especially following a recent advertising fiasco from Google, whose ad for the Olympics was pulled after receiving criticism for using AI to draft an emotional letter. When asked about what was learned from that stumble, Rouch emphasized that "the whole space is learning," stressing that "authenticity really matters." During the Super Bowl, Google will also present its Gemini ad, which makes a similar pitch to OpenAI, while Meta will showcase an ad about AI features in its Ray-Ban smart glasses.
OpenAI’s ad is launched amid a growing public discourse about the social impact of artificial intelligence. Addressing potential criticism for comparing AI to fundamental innovations like fire and the wheel, Rouch was emphatic: "We fundamentally believe in the transformative power of this technology. It is essential to everything we do."
