Amazon Scores Touchdown In Hilarious Echo Super Bowl Ad When Alexa Gets Laryngitis
Amazon's energetic CEO, Jeff Bezos, is visibly concerned about losing one of his most famous stars and inquires if any potential voice actors have been lined up as a replacement. After a half-hearted confirmation that Amazon has a rather deep bench of voice talent, the commercial starts cranking up the laughs.
We won't give away the rather humorous bits that follow, but we will say that Gordon Ramsey heckles with his typical foul-mouth commentary and brutish, condescending behavior. There's also a rather cringe-worthy appearance by actress Rebel Wilson and extended footage from Cardi B. But perhaps the icing on the cake is when acting legend Sir Anthony Hopkins appears on screen.
While the cameos from famous celebrities are noteworthy, and Alexa is mentioned throughout, Amazon also uses the commercial to highlight its latest lineup of Echo devices, including the Echo Dot, Echo Show, Echo Spot, and second gen Echo. Overall, it's a well thought out ad that will garner more than a few laughs from Super Bowl viewers.
According to the latest analysis by Consumer Intelligence Researcher Partners (CIRP), Amazon's Echo family holds a commanding 69 percent share of the AI smart speaker market. On the other hand, Google had an incredible Q4 with its Google Home counterparts, and now accounts for 31 percent of the market. CIRP estimates that there are 32 million Echo devices installed in American households, while Google Home sits at less than half of that number with 14 million.
If 2017 is any indication, we should see even stronger growth in the sector during 2018.