Google’s New AI Ad Campaign Misses the Mark
Tech giants continue to struggle with how to sell AI to the public, and Google’s latest campaign is no exception. The company’s new ads, titled Just Ask Google, are plastered across TV screens and movie theaters, pushing the idea that letting an AI make your decisions can solve life’s problems—even finding love.
The ad in question follows a familiar formula. It starts by portraying the protagonist as hopeless, only to have their fortunes change once they rely on Google’s AI for guidance. The message is clear: trust a trillion-dollar corporation’s algorithm, and your life will improve.
But the campaign feels out of touch. For one, it leans into the tired trope that AI is a magic fix for personal shortcomings. Worse, it glosses over the real concerns people have about handing over decision-making to opaque corporate systems. Privacy, bias, and the sheer unpredictability of large language models are nowhere to be seen in this glossy, feel-good narrative.
Google isn’t the first to fumble AI marketing. Other tech companies have rolled out similarly tone-deaf campaigns, treating AI like a quirky friend rather than a powerful, often flawed tool. The result is a growing disconnect between how these companies view AI and how the public perceives it.
If Big Tech wants people to embrace AI, it needs to ditch the fairy-tale pitches and address real questions. How does AI handle sensitive data? What safeguards exist against misinformation? Until then, flashy ads like Just Ask Google will keep missing the point.
