Super Bowl ad triggers viewers' Google Home devices

Today held the biggest sporting event of the year in the US and for those who weren't able or willing to shell out thousands of dollars to catch the game at the stadium, watching at home was the next best thing. That means taking in all the new ad campaigns that revolve around the event.

And among all the excitement, Google found an ingenious way to make its campaign for the Home devices work very well for the company.

In the very touching ad, people say, “Okay, Google,” to make the Home units light up. This simultaneously activated numerous Google Home devices all around the nation. Minutes later Twitter was inundated with comments on how the ad triggered their own devices at home.

As it turns out, the units in viewers’ homes tried responding to the voices in the ad as if they were real people, causing some units to have hilarious meltdowns.

And, for a change, Alexa didn’t follow suit. Amazon Echo devices were quiet this time round, unlike the time when a news story about a Texan six-year-old ordering a dollhouse prompted a not-so-smart Alexa-powered shopping spree to ensue in San Diego.

You can watch Google's Super Bowl commercial below.

Sharmishta Sarkar
Managing Editor (APAC)

While she's happiest with a camera in her hand, Sharmishta's main priority is being TechRadar's APAC Managing Editor, looking after the day-to-day functioning of the Australian, New Zealand and Singapore editions of the site, steering everything from news and reviews to ecommerce content like deals and coupon codes. While she loves reviewing cameras and lenses when she can, she's also an avid reader and has become quite the expert on ereaders and E Ink writing tablets, having appeared on Singaporean radio to talk about these underrated devices. Other than her duties at TechRadar, she's also the Managing Editor of the Australian edition of Digital Camera World, and writes for Tom's Guide and T3.