Wooohooo, my all-time favorite Super Bowl ad was released this week, and it is getting international laughs mixed with awe.  GM is using the biggest advertising stage, the U.S. Super Bowl, to promote the idea of national pride in the rapid adoption of electric vehicles.  The premise of the ad is that Will Ferrell is incensed that Norway is far outpacing the United States in electric vehicle sales.  Indeed, the majority of cars sold in Norway in 2020 were electric, and 67% of car sales in December in Norway were electric.  Norway expects all car sales by 2025 to be zero-emissions.  Now that’s moving the needle!  (Check out our prior blog post on how the existence of phase out plans will accelerate EV adoption way ahead of the projected end date for fossil fuel dependent systems.)

This GM ad is remarkable on so many levels.  Consider that last year GM joined in a Super Bowl industry show of EVs; and this year it is doubling down on its dedication to conquering the EV market.  GM is seeding the public discourse with national pride gamification to build momentum for the growth in EVs.  And the Super Bowl advertising humor playing out on the world stage is a great way to build momentum for the United States to get back in the Greenhouse Gas emission reduction race.

This GM Super Bowl ad also plays well along-side this week’s announcement by President Biden to transition the federal government’s fleet of 650,000 vehicles to electric while building out 550,000 charging stations.  Although President Biden did not specify the timeframe to complete this transformation, announcing this intention contributes to building consensus that we will move away from fossil fuel vehicles urgently.