Builders Club

Every year, millions of viewers are captivated by the spectacle of the Super Bowl, their eyes fixed on the big screen as elaborate, feature-length commercials are shown. In 2025, the first commercial for OpenAI provided an extraordinary contrast within this gigantic environment. The compelling animation took viewers on a fast-paced journey through the evolution of life and technology. The piece begins with a single point, a visual framework that unleashes to portray AI as both a powerful tool and the next logical step in the evolution of humanity. The force behind this intelligent storytelling and technically outstanding realisation is the creative studio Builders Club, founded in 2015, which brought the vision to life in collaboration with Accenture Song (strategic concept). Founders Jonas Hegi and Julien Simshauser – both seasoned designers and directors – are known for their seamless fusion of reality and surrealism. Over the years, they have created numerous immersive visual worlds and award-winning (short) films. With a team of 24, Builders Club consistently strikes a balance between high artistic standards and solution-oriented ideas – as demonstrated in their OpenAI work. The journey from the invention of the wheel to the development of AI may have been a long one, but Builders Club managed to capture it in just a few seconds and stage a narrative that is both easy to understand and visually impressive.

Interview with Lauren Egen

Red Dot: The placement of OpenAI/ChatGPT’s first TV advert during the Super Bowl was a coup. Was that also something special for you as a designer?

It was extremely exciting for us to see the commercial presented on such a large scale and together with millions of people. In order to stand out in this media environment, which is characterised by prominent, loud and high-quality commercials, we deliberately opted for an animation inspired by pointillism.

What message did you want to convey to the viewers?

Humans have always developed tools to achieve progress and prosperity. The emergence of AI is now once again a defining moment. Even though the perception of AI is characterised by great uncertainty, this story has often repeated itself in the past. Just as previous innovations have driven the progress of humanity, AI has the potential to do the same. ChatGPT is already a partner for millions of people, especially young creative minds, yet it is still completely unknown to many. We wanted the audience to see AI as the next big leap, as a powerful tool that opens up new possibilities.

What was the biggest challenge in implementing this project?

The challenge was finding the right balance. We wanted to highlight key evolutionary milestones that were instantly recognisable through our point-based visuals, while developing compelling storytelling. Throughout the script and production phase, we worked continuously to create a seamless blend of narrative, historical references and stylistic expression.

A heretical question: Was AI involved in the creation?

We initially met with the Sora AI team to understand how best to integrate the tool into the workflow. During pre-visualisation, Sora supported us with experimentation and rapid, iterative creative exploration. Similar to a smart sketchpad, it helped us to immediately visualise each milestone so that we could develop it further. These images were then integrated into a Houdini pipeline that allowed precise control of point size, fidelity and movement. Each AI-generated sequence was designed by humans, in a constant ping-pong between the irreplaceable human vision and the AI tools. So there were human creative professionals behind the realisation, and Sora was used exclusively as a brainstorming and exploration tool – not in the final product itself.