New ad imagines what life would be like if Alexa read minds

Starring Scarlett Johansson, this glam but witty spot continues Amazon’s habit of going big on Alexa for the Super Bowl

The Super Bowl cometh. Which means this week will see the launch of a series of blockbuster ads over the coming days as the US revs up for the big game on Sunday, which also doubles as the biggest series of ad breaks of the year.

We have grown accustomed to a certain formula from Amazon’s Alexa ads over recent years – a mixture of big name celebs and humour. Previous years have seen the likes of Ellen DeGeneres and Michael B Jordan show up for the brand – joining them this year is Scarlett Johansson and Colin Jost.

The couple are shown relaxing at home with help from their Alexa, which, it turns out, can read their minds. Hilarity thus ensues.

The ad could be read as a more extreme take on our general paranoia that Alexa, and other voice-activated assistants, are constantly listening in on our lives, and harvesting them for commercial opportunities.

The spot doesn’t really do anything to allay that possibility, instead just ramps it up to the point of ridiculousness, as Alexa is shown revealing Johansson and Jost’s embarrassing inner thoughts. Happily nothing too cringeworthy comes out, of course – instead it’s all light-hearted fun and the spot will no doubt rack up the views online, even before it airs ‘officially’ on Sunday.

Credits:
Agency: Lucky Generals
Production Company: Hungryman LA
Director: Wayne McClammy