Why Tech Brands Need Personality Again

Episode Summary

In this episode of Culture and Code, hosts Rei Inamoto and Tara Tan dissect the recent advertising campaigns from AI giants OpenAI and Anthropic, exploring what these vastly different approaches reveal about tech marketing, brand personality, and the humanization of AI. From OpenAI's intimate, film-shot vignettes to Anthropic's philosophical anthem, they examine how Silicon Valley is attempting to solve its image problem and why tech brands have lost their playful edge.

Key Takeaways

The Tale of Two AI Campaigns

• OpenAI's approach: Real-life moments shot on 35mm film featuring mundane, relatable scenarios
• Anthropic's strategy: Philosophical, anthemic spot encouraging deeper thinking
• The irony: OpenAI didn't use their own Sora technology to create their ads
• Both attempting to humanize AI technology amid growing image problems

The Power of Hype in Tech Markets

• News cycles directly correlate with funding rounds and stock prices
• Oracle's $300B OpenAI data center deal sparked a 45% stock surge in one day
• Sam Altman's mastery of generating constant news coverage
• "Hype as infrastructure" - how narrative drives billions in capital movement

The Lost Era of Tech Brand Personality

• The golden age: Mac vs. PC, BlackBerry vs. Apple campaigns
• BlackBerry's "shot through an apple" campaign and Apple's brilliant response
• Today's Silicon Valley billboards: "Do you want more GPUs?" and "Want inference faster?"
• The shift from playful competitive rivalry to fear-based, bland messaging

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About the Hosts

Rei Inamoto: Creative entrepreneur and founding partner of I&CO, a global innovation firm with offices in New York, Tokyo, and Singapore. 

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Rei's LinkedIn

Newsletter "The Intersection"

Tara Tan: Managing partner of Strange Ventures, an early-stage firm investing in the future of computing. 

Follow Tara here:

Tara's LinkedIn

Newsletter: The Strange Review

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Culture and Code is a podcast about the biggest shifts in tech, business, and culture—before they go mainstream. New episodes on every Tuesday.