Google to Run 2 Mystery Ads During Super Bowl LIII

A Google spokesperson confirmed the Big Game buy but did not provide any additional information. At this time it is unclear when the ads will run, which products they will promote or which agencies are handling creative as Google works with a long list of shops on projects spanning its product range.

Additionally, YouTube TV, another Alphabet brand, will sponsor the pre-game show on CBS and run two of its own ads during that portion of the broadcast. YouTube’s ad revenue continued to rise throughout 2018 despite widely publicized brand safety concerns, with the company retaining most major advertisers. Earlier this month, AT&T also announced that it would begin running ads on the platform again after a nearly two-year absence.

Google declined to elaborate on either company’s Super Bowl strategy.

Both Google and YouTube opted to sit out last year’s Big Game. In 2017, a spot promoting the Google Home smart speaker system infamously set off thousands of the devices when a character in the ad said, “OK Google.”

Many of Google’s most recent ads promoted the new Pixel phone, but a report released last summer showed the company gaining on Amazon in the increasingly important smart speaker market, with Home shipments outpacing those of the Echo for the second straight quarter.

Amazon’s Super Bowl ad, released yesterday, focuses on Echo and Alexa.

For all the latest Super Bowl advertising news—who’s in, who’s out, teasers, full ads and more—check out Adweek’s Super Bowl LIII Ad Tracker. And join us on the evening of Feb. 3 for the best in-game coverage of the Super Bowl commercials anywhere.