Superbowl 2026: What did brands do differently this year?

1. Creators as Co-Creators

One of the most talked-about activations of Super Bowl LX came from Salesforce, which brought onboard YouTube sensation MrBeast to create an interactive puzzle-based commercial promoting the company’s Slackbot AI assistant.

Rather than a straightforward product demo, this ad leaned into MrBeast’s signature audience engagement style. The cross-platform stunt was built around participation and curiosity, something traditional advertising often refrains from attempting on a mass broadcast.

What this brand did differently:

• Co-creators led the creative direction: The brand integrated creator style and engagement mechanics, not just their face or influence.‍
• Creators as collaborators: They’re no longer just paid talent.

2. A-List Actors Joined the Ranks

Greek director Yorgos Lanthimos and his long-time muse, actor Emma Stone partnered with Squarespace to produce an art-house advertisement. The ad features Stone attempting to register a domain-name (unsuccessfully) as she becomes repeatedly frustrated. Squarespace ultimately aimed, with the ad, to amplify the message that your online identity matters and it can also be super easy to lose.

What this brand did differently:

• ​​Cinematic storytelling over punchlines: Instead of a gag or broad comedy, Squarespace leaned into character and mood, almost like a short film.‍
• Clear brand relevance: The creative tied directly back to Squarespace’s core benefit: registering a domain and building a presence online, without losing emotional resonance.

3. Nostalgia as a Strategic Choice

Brands such as Pepsi utilized their iconic polar-bear character to create an ad centered around the viral ‘blind taste-test’ challenge which saw Coca Cola (their long-standing rival) go head to head with their Zero Sugar drink variation.

Xfinity also utilized nostalgia with their “Jurassic Park Works” campaign which reunited original cast members Sam Neill, Laura Dern, and Jeff Goldblum. The ad plays out a hypothetical scenario in which the park’s infamous systems failure never happens, due to a reliable Xfinity connection keeping the power on and the dinosaurs firmly under control.

What did these brands do differently?

• Emotional engagement: Using iconic characters creates a larger audience, spanning different generations.
• Nostalgia as a strategic lever: The ad seamlessly fit with the brand’s campaign, without undermining any creativity.

4. AI-Ads Were a Mixed Bag

Unsurprisingly, for some brands, AI took center stage. Sveda, for example, utilized the tool to create an advertisement that revived its old ‘fembot’ mascot. The brand partnered with Silverside AI, the brand behind the recent controversial Coca Cola advertisement which similarly utilized AI tools.

Anthropic, one of OpenAI’s main rivals, also utilized the tool, but used their ad-time to throw shade at the rival company and the supposed prospect that ads will now feature on ChatGPT. The ad’s acknowledgement of the feud saw positive reactions, with audiences preferring self-awareness to shallow product placements.

What brands did differently:

• AI created entire advertisements: (No actors or creators necessary).‍
• Humor proves popular: Those that were tied to humor or narrative landed well.