Later today, Svedka will broadcast what it calls the “first AI-generated Super Bowl commercial” (above). Super Bowl ads cost $7–8 million for the media slot and another $500K–$5M for production.
Marketing expert and curmudgeon Mark Ritson applauded the ad for bringing back Svedka’s retired, “iconic” Fembot mascot after a “12-year recharge” to dance with a new fellow mascot, Brobot.
Sara Saunders, Chief Marketing Officer at Sazerac, told Men’s Journal the ad “didn’t save the company much money”, explaining that “its never been an efficiency play [for Sazerac] it’s been a storytelling play”. The bet is that generative AI plus a distinctive asset equals a memorable ad that will “create conversation”.
The ad raises a question I keep returning to in The Medium: When production costs go to near-zero, who captures the value?
It offers three lessons.
