Monday Briefing: The Super Bowl's AI Contrast

Good morning, it's James here. If you spent last night watching the Super Bowl for the ads rather than the touchdowns, you saw specific battle lines being drawn in the AI space. Here’s a quick run down if you missed it.

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The Lead: The Super Bowl's AI Contrast

Last week, we talked about ChatGPT becoming an ad platform. Last night, Anthropic spent millions to tell you why they aren’t.

What happened: Anthropic, the team behind Claude, made its Super Bowl debut with a 30-second spot that directly poked fun at its rivals (Marketing Dive). The ad, "Can I get a six pack quickly?", featured a user getting frustrated with an AI that kept suggesting sponsored electrolyte drinks before answering the question.

Why CMOs should care: We are seeing the first major philosophical split in the AI era. OpenAI and Google are leaning into the search model (sponsored results), while Anthropic is betting on a "pure" assistant model. As a marketer, your strategy for 2026 depends on which horse wins: do you buy your way into the answer, or do you earn your way in?

The take: Anthropic’s move is brilliant because it targets the one thing users hate most about search: the clutter. For brands, this means the "rented land" of AI search ads might be more volatile than we thought. If users flock to ad-free assistants, your paid media team needs a plan B that looks a lot more like high-authority PR and a lot less like PPC.

Channel Shift: The EU vs. TikTok's "Addictive Design"

The regulatory heat on TikTok just shifted from "who owns it" to "how it works."

The news: The European Commission issued a preliminary ruling on Friday stating that TikTok’s "addictive design"—including infinite scroll, autoplay, and its personalized recommender system—breaches the Digital Services Act (The Guardian, February 6, 2026). The EU's executive arm believes TikTok needs to change its "basic design" to protect minors and vulnerable adults.

The implication: If TikTok is forced to disable autoplay or infinite scroll in the EU, engagement metrics will crater. For CMOs, this is a signal to stop treating TikTok as a "set and forget" media buy. The platform’s greatest strength (its addictive stickiness) is now its greatest legal liability.

By The Numbers: 43%

That is the higher mention rate content achieves in generative AI responses when it is specifically optimized for AI citations rather than traditional search rankings (Seafoam Media).

We are officially entering the era of Generative Engine Optimization (GEO). Traditional SEO was about getting the click; GEO is about being the source the AI trusts to quote. If your content team isn't thinking about structured data and conversational authority yet, you’re essentially invisible to the next generation of searchers.

Musical Chairs

Collectors has hired Josh Rabenovets as its new Chief Marketing Officer (Sports Business Journal). Rabenovets, who previously led Global Fan Engagement at the NFL, will now oversee a marketing and communications staff of more than 80 people. Signal: The collectibles market is no longer a hobby niche; it's a technology-driven category scaling with institutional rigor.

Supergoop! named Lauren Weinberg as its new CMO (Cosmetics Business). Weinberg joins from Peloton, bringing a high-growth, high-intensity playbook to the premium SPF brand.

The Reading List

• The complete Super Bowl 60 ad tracker: Marketing Dive's exhaustive list of who won the night.

• GEO: The New Frontier of Search: Why you need to optimize for citations, not just clicks.

• Collectors Lures NFL Exec for CMO Role: Deep dive into the collectibles giant's latest leadership move.

• TikTok’s "addictive design" breaches EU rules: The Guardian's breakdown of why the infinite scroll is in the crosshairs (February 6, 2026).

• Pfizer's Super Bowl Breakthrough: How Pfizer used World Cancer Day to pivot its brand message during the Big Game (Fierce Pharma, February 4, 2026).

One More Thing

The most expensive ad in the world last night was an ad about not having ads. We've officially come full circle. The question for your team this week is: if the "sponsored result" disappears, does your brand still have a voice?

See you next Monday.

James