Lewis Hamilton's Perplexity ad explains AI through metaphor

Perplexity’s ‘Orchestrate Greatness' does something most AI advertising often struggles to: explain what the medium actually does.

Perplexity's central idea, developed by SLAPS, is elegant and simple: an orchestra needs a conductor, a computer needs an engine, and modern achievement needs a system capable of organising complexity.

Lewis Hamilton, a man synonymous with human intervention in machine excellence via his Formula 1 mastery, is a smart choice here.

He presents Perplexity as the ‘invisible intelligence’ helping convert overwhelming information into actionable clarity.

Visually, the campaign leans into cinematic and futuristic territory with a touch of minimalism. It frames AI as a collaborator in human excellence, rather than, well you know, stealing our jobs and all that.

AI’s ad outlook

AI has got us, mere mortals, a bit shook, given its rapid ascent. So it’s interesting to look at how brands are tackling these (real or imagined) fears.

Anthropic (Claude)’s ‘Ads are coming to AI. But not to Claude.’ reframed the AI conversation around trust. The ads depict absurd, intrusive advertising scenarios before landing on the line: “Ads are coming to AI. But not to Claude.”

The message here is that the platform is not about to spring a ‘streaming service’ rug pull on you as soon as you become reliant on it. It also plays to our fears over questionable data use.

OpenAI is at a different stage from Anthropic. Its goal seems to be ensuring that, when people think of AI, they think of ChatGPT.

Its Super Bowl ad ‘You Can Just Build Things’ is a utopian offering which celebrates what could be possible when software and humans combine. The act of creation appeals to our innate need for progress and advancement. Here, it's shown as a mutual goal between man and machine.

Google Gemini, meanwhile, is keen to highlight the technology's role in assisting us humans. It plays on the heartstrings and our human connections to frame the tech as making us more human.

As AI brands become household names and part of the culture, they are striving to define their roles within it.

Credits

Brand: Perplexity
Agency: SLAPS
Featured Talent: Lewis Hamilton
Strategy, Creative & Production: SLAPS