Google quietly edits its latest Super Bowl ad after its AI chatbot made a strange claim about the popularity of Gouda cheese.
In recent years, we’ve witnessed how Artificial Intelligence (AI) is revolutionizing the way brands design and execute their advertising campaigns. From personalizing messages to optimizing strategies in real-time, AI has become an indispensable tool for marketing teams seeking greater efficiency and effectiveness in their initiatives.
According to data from Statista, 31 percent of marketing professionals use AI to create content for social media. 28 percent of marketers use AI to create and respond to emails. 25 percent of marketers use AI to generate product descriptions.
Google quietly edits its Super Bowl ad
It was revealed on Friday that the search giant’s ad, which featured small American businesses using Gemini AI, falsely claimed that Gouda (a cheese variety with a lower profile compared to household staples like cheddar, mozzarella, and parmesan) represents “between 50 and 60 percent of global cheese consumption.”
After a backlash on social media, Google acknowledged the error and agreed to modify the ad to remove the “50 to 60 percent” claim.
Furthermore, the store featured in the ad, Wisconsin Cheese Mart, also removed the AI-generated claim from its website.
The viral nature of these ads led Andrew Novakovic, Emeritus Professor of Agricultural Economics at Cornell University, to intervene on social media, stating that Gouda “almost certainly isn’t the most consumed cheese in the world.”
The Gemini AI campaign did not cite a source for the claim, but according to several websites, more than half of the Netherlands’ national cheese production (as opposed to more than half of global cheese consumption) is dedicated to Gouda.
In that sense, according to statistics from the International Dairy Products Association, Gouda is the 12th most popular cheese worldwide, just behind Swiss cheese and ahead of Monterey Jack.
Despite Google AI modifying its Gouda claims, Jerry Dischler, President of Google Cloud’s Applications, doubled down and told a user on X, “Gemini is based on the web, and users can always verify results and references. In this case, several websites on the web include the 50-60 percent statistic.”
In light of the controversy, a Google spokesperson told U.S. media that the changes were made after a conversation with the cheese vendor. “After the question arose about the Gouda statistic, we spoke with the owner of Wisconsin Cheese Mart to ask how they would handle it,” the spokesperson said.
According to many, a possible source for Google AI’s claim was a page on Cheese.com that detailed that Gouda is “the most popular Dutch cheese in the world and represents 50 to 60 percent of global cheese consumption”; some speculate that it should have clarified “global consumption of Dutch cheese.”
This dispute over accuracy comes at a time when Google is doubling down on its AI tools, recently incorporating Gemini into its Workspace suite and raising the price of its subscription services.
This shows how many brands are using AI to create their marketing campaigns, one of the pioneers in the use of AI being Coca-Cola, which launched the “Create Real Magic” campaign using generative AI tools. This initiative allowed consumers to create personalized artistic pieces from their interactions with the brand.
Reed more:
Super Bowl: Which brands spend the most on advertising?
