Hey team, if you are reading this with a Super Bowl hangover that still hasn’t quit you, welcome to Thursday, the day when everyone finally admits they watched more halftime show clips on social than actual football.
This Super Bowl unfolded like a defensive battle, a low scoring game that didn’t really open up until the final moments, and the advertising followed the same pattern, with fewer explosive swings and far more brands choosing to play it safe on the biggest stage in marketing.
The halftime show broke that rhythm entirely. Bad Bunny didn’t just perform, he delivered a moment that was about unity, identity, and humanity, and the controversy that followed only underscored why it mattered…when a room is cautious, conviction cuts through.
That same tension ran through the ads all night. Marketers weren’t debating AI versus humanity anymore, they were testing where the line actually lives. AI showed up quieter and more practical, nostalgia worked as a shortcut to recognition in an overpolished feed, and humor only landed when it knew when to step aside. Coinbase’s karaoke moment understood that balance, and Chipotle did too by refusing to chase the same tech shorthand as everyone else.
This wasn’t an exciting Super Bowl, but it was a revealing one.
And it mirrors how we’re thinking about the work right now. We recently refreshed our consumer page to better reflect how we partner with brands who value clarity over gimmicks, and we welcomed Rally Point PR into the SourceCode family because scale only works when the DNA stays intact and the point of view gets sharper, not diluted.
That’s the lens for this issue. Who trusted their identity, who chased sameness, and why restraint is quietly becoming the strongest signal in the market.
Let’s get into it.
Kevin
Chipotle pokes fun at AI Super Bowl ads to spotlight real ingredients
TL;DR:
Chipotle used its Super Bowl spot to gently roast the flood of AI driven ads, reminding viewers that real food and real ingredients are still the point.
Takeaway:
This worked because Chipotle knows exactly who it is and does not flinch. While other brands chased relevance through technology, Chipotle chose clarity through contrast. That takes confidence, especially on a stage this big.
The real signal here is not anti AI, it is anti sameness. And it is quietly counter-cultural. In a moment where advertising is obsessed with signaling relevance through tech shorthand, Chipotle chose refusal over participation. Not because AI is bad, but because chasing it would dilute a truth their audience already believes. When everyone sounds the same, restraint becomes differentiation. Humor becomes strategy when it reinforces identity, not when it distracts from it.
Consider:
• For marketers, where are you chasing relevance instead of reinforcing identity
• For communications leaders, what would it look like to take a clearer stance and say less
🔎 The SourceCode Signal 🔎
Inside the 2026 Super Bowl ads: Four key themes marketers should pay attention to
TL;DR:
This year’s Super Bowl ads showed brands simplifying AI stories, leaning into nostalgia, embracing humor, and grounding everything in emotion and connection.
Takeaway:
The pattern was restraint. On the biggest stage in marketing, brands stopped overexplaining and started trusting the audience. AI showed up as practical, not magical. Celebrities became self aware, not salesy. Emotion focused on inclusion and shared experience, not manufactured grandeur.
This is not a creative coincidence. It is a cultural correction. In a landscape saturated with spectacle, clarity became the counter culture. Saying less signaled confidence. Treating the audience like adults created connection. Humanity outperformed hype.
The lesson is not to copy the themes. It is to understand why they worked. When everything is loud, coherence stands out. When everything is optimized, sincerity wins.
Consider:
• For marketers, which of these signals reinforce how your audience already sees you
• For communications leaders, where could restraint create more trust than reinvention
As AI dominates the zeitgeist, some brands are going retro for the Super Bowl
TL;DR:
Several Super Bowl advertisers leaned into retro visuals and analog styles to stand apart from the wave of polished, AI inspired creative.
Takeaway:
Nostalgia worked because it reduced the effort required to connect. Familiar visuals buy attention quickly. But that only holds when nostalgia is anchored in something real.
The brands that won used the past to say something current about reliability, humanity, or craft. The ones that missed treated nostalgia like a surface treatment. Familiarity only works when it sharpens meaning, because comfort without substance fades fast.
The signal here is not retro for retro’s sake, but cognitive efficiency. In a crowded feed, the fastest path to relevance is often recognition, but only when recognition leads somewhere.
Consider:
• For marketers, what emotional shortcut has your brand already earned
• For communications leaders, where does heritage reinforce the story versus distract from it
Super Bowl Hot Take: Google’s Gemini ad is sweet but predictable
https://www.adweek.com/creativity/super-bowl-hot-take-google-gemini-ad
TL;DR:
Google’s Gemini Super Bowl ad leaned into warmth and accessibility, choosing reassurance over surprise.
Takeaway:
This is what leadership looks like when trust matters more than buzz. Google played it safe because it can afford to. That is not a creative miss, it is a strategic choice.
But it also reveals a bigger signal. AI storytelling is already flattening. When the category leader feels familiar, differentiation shifts downstream. The message alone is no longer enough. Advantage now lives in execution, context, and point of view. (Like being human)
The risk is not being predictable. The risk is teaching the category how to be forgettable.
Consider:
• For marketers, when does safety support scale and when does it quietly erode recall
• For communications leaders, how do you evolve a narrative without resetting trust