AI Tech Will Take Center Stage in the Super Bowl LIX Ads

This year's Super Bowl kicks off at 6:30 PM ET on Sunday, February 9, on Fox Sports, and from sneak peeks and early reports, AI-focused commercials will dominate the broadcast.

"AI is coming. If it's not already here in almost every business, it will be coming like a freight train," says Mark Evans, executive vice president for ad sales at Fox Sports, in an interview with The Hollywood Reporter, breaking down what to expect. "So you will see some more AI focused creative, which I think intuitively would be expected." In the same interview, Evans says that massive companies investing in AI and some AI-specific companies will be represented during the game.

News reports indicate that Fox Sports has sold Super Bowl ad space at a rate of $8 million for a 30-second spot, setting a new record.

Viewers can expect commercials showcasing how AI-powered technology promises to enhance daily life. Salesforce plans to promote its AI agent, which assists customers directly on commerce sites, while Booking.com will highlight its "AI Trip Planner," which personalizes vacation experiences.

But what about AI safety amid these commercials' promises of convenience and efficiency?

A new paper published last week by a team of leading computer science researchers, including David Duvenaud, warns of the risk of “gradual disempowerment” from advanced AI. It starts with AIs making decisions for us about where to go on vacation, but it ends with AIs making all of the most important decisions about which companies to invest in, what media to produce, and how governments should be run.

Elon Musk’s Department of Government Efficiency (DOGE) team is reportedly planning to use AI to identify waste, fraud, and abuse in federal government spending. This is only one step away from AI deciding which government programs should and should not be funded.

Musk is supporting the use of AI partly out of genuine enthusiasm, but as Duvenaud’s paper warns, soon those in power may have little choice: “Decision-makers at all levels will soon face pressures to reduce human involvement across labor markets, governance structures, cultural production, and even social interactions. Those who resist these pressures will eventually be displaced by those who do not.” 

Because AI will increasingly be more efficient and effective at marketing than the vast majority of humans, institutions run by AI will likely achieve better results. This will put downward pressure on, for example, the stock prices of human-led companies. Even if AI follows the law and is reasonably well-behaved, we should still expect humans to gradually lose power in the marketplace and society.

Troublingly, there’s no floor on how bad this gradual disempowerment can get. Over the next few decades, we could see AI take control of essentially all assets and resources, leaving even smart and hard-working humans unable to compete and afford the basic necessities of life.

These concerns extend beyond the researchers on this particular paper. A recent survey of 2,778 machine learning experts estimated a 16 percent chance that superintelligent AI would completely disempower humanity upon its arrival. The same experts projected a 10 percent chance of superintelligence emerging as early as 2027 and a 50 percent chance by 2047.

As Big Tech and commercial interests rapidly deploy AI technologies, they prioritize speed over safety considerations in reshaping American commerce and culture.

If you want to get a head start on seeing some AI-focused commercials that will run on Sunday, CNET has collected some of them here. Enjoy Sunday’s big game, and as you watch the commercials, ask yourself whether any of these companies have a plan to ensure that their AI systems remain safe and controlled.