This is The Stepback, a weekly newsletter breaking down one essential story from the tech world. For more stories on Big Tech versus politics in Washington, DC, follow Tina Nguyen and read Regulator. The Stepback arrives in our subscribers’ inboxes at 8AM ET. Opt in for The Stepback here.
Technology
Watch Super Bowl LX ads: 10 must‑see commercials
NEWYou can now listen to Fox News articles!
The cost of a Super Bowl commercial has officially entered jaw-dropping territory. For Super Bowl LX, some 30-second ad slots have reportedly sold for as much as $10 million.
That figure marks a new high for the Big Game. Even the average price this year sits closer to $8 million. As a result, Super Bowl airtime has become one of the most valuable buys in advertising, especially for brands chasing massive live audiences.
Back in 1967, when the first Super Bowl aired, commercial placements were modest and easy to overlook. Since then, the Super Bowl has grown into a cultural event where advertisers compete for attention and relevance. Today, commercials are no longer treated as interruptions. Instead, they are appointment viewing. With audiences expected to once again approach historic highs, brands are betting that the right creative moment can justify even an eight-figure price tag.
Based on what brands are putting on screen this year, that investment shows up in different ways. For example, Super Bowl LX ads span a wide range of styles. Some lean into self-aware humor and celebrity chaos. Others focus on quieter, more emotional storytelling and wellness messages.
Sign up for my FREE CyberGuy Report
Get my best tech tips, urgent security alerts and exclusive deals delivered straight to your inbox. Plus, you’ll get instant access to my Ultimate Scam Survival Guide – free when you join my CYBERGUY.COM newsletter.
SUPER BOWL SCAMS SURGE IN FEBRUARY AND TARGET YOUR DATA
Ben Affleck and the art of Super Bowl self-parody
Dunkin’ is once again leaning all the way into self-aware absurdity, and Ben Affleck is clearly having a blast. In “Golden Cringe,” Affleck returns for his fourth straight Super Bowl run with Dunkin’ Donuts, this time pitching a VHS-era “gold mine” to two mystery figures named “Jen and Matt” — setting off a celebrity guessing game about whether familiar faces like Jennifer Lopez and Matt Damon might return.
The teaser plays like a chaotic brainstorm you were never supposed to see, and Affleck’s long-running joke that his Dunkin’ obsession predates fame, studios and good ideas. Affleck even riffs on how other stores once “kicked him out,” underscoring his obsession with the brand while teasing that this could be the “pinnacle of all our careers.”
When one keg becomes the main character
Bud Light keeps it simple and lets the moment spiral. In Keg, NFL legend Peyton Manning, comedian Shane Gillis and Grammy winner Post Malone stand together as Manning casually holds a glass of Bud Light. Post Malone scans the scene and asks the question everyone at a party eventually asks: “Is there enough for everyone?” Manning points off into the distance and replies, “Oh, right there,” just as a guy hauling a keg completely loses control. The keg breaks free and starts rolling down a canyon, sending all three tumbling after it as Whitney Houston’s I Will Always Love You swells dramatically in the background. After the chaos settles, Manning stands up, places his Bud Light down and looks around before delivering the understated line, “Heck of a wedding, huh?”
The ceremony somehow continues. Gillis turns to the bride and offers a polite, “Hey, it’s a great ceremony,” then pivots to the camera and deadpans, “I give it a week.” The ad lands by letting the contrast do the work. Sentimental music, runaway kegs and brutally honest humor collide, making Bud Light’s Super Bowl moment feel effortless, absurd and perfectly timed.
A sci-fi legend tackles fiber head-on
Kellogg’s leans into nostalgia and cheeky humor with Will Shat, starring William Shatner as Raisin Bran’s unlikely “bran ambassador.” The spot opens in space as an alert flashes that America is low on fiber. Shatner answers the call in classic deadpan style, declaring that “duty calls” before announcing he is here to bring fiber to the masses with Kellogg’s Raisin Bran. The ad then becomes a fast-moving tour of everyday life. Shatner pops up in a sports bar and a living room, calmly delivering bathroom-adjacent puns while everyone around him looks stunned.
He declares, “It’s fiber time,” then eyes a nearby dog and asks, “Is that dog a shih tzu?” The joke lands again when the pup’s collar reveals a “Will” dog tag. The chaos peaks at a football tailgate, where Shatner climbs onto a car, mutters that he is “too old for this,” and crashes down onto a table stacked with Raisin Bran boxes.
Football reimagined as a diner menu
Uber Eats plays it straight in “Diner Menu,” starring Parker Posey and Matthew McConaughey as two people calmly unraveling what they believe is an obvious truth. Sitting together, Posey starts laying out her case, rattling off food-coded phrases like “pancake blocks” and “hash marks,” treating football terminology like menu items. McConaughey nods and admits he could eat that “every morning and twice on Sunday.” Their conclusion feels inevitable. Football, according to them, is basically a diner menu.
McConaughey takes the theory a step further with a piece of football trivia. Barry Sanders played for Detroit for 10 years. What color was his jersey? Blue. Posey answers, “Blueberry,” McConaughey responds by letting out a shriek and casually popping a blueberry into his mouth. Parker then immediately admits, “That was a bit of a reach,” with Matthew adding, “Football is totally selling food.”
A Super Bowl teaser built on kindness and community
Rocket and Redfin take a softer approach to Super Bowl advertising with a black-and-white teaser featuring Lady Gaga. The spot reimagines “Won’t You Be My Neighbor?” – the iconic theme from Mister Rogers’ Neighborhood – setting the tone for a larger campaign focused on home, belonging and community. Instead of spectacle, the teaser leans on simplicity, emotion and a familiar melody that immediately signals warmth. Gaga’s understated performance anchors the message. Known for championing individuality and kindness, she brings a quiet sincerity to the song that feels personal rather than performative.
A deli singalong powered by mayo
Hellmann’s turns lunchtime into a full-blown musical in “Meal Diamond,” starring Andy Samberg as a parody crooner inspired by Neil Diamond. Set inside a crowded deli, the ad kicks off as Samberg launches into “Sweet Sandwich Time,” a mayo-fueled anthem that quickly pulls everyone behind the counter and in line into the performance. What starts as a routine lunch rush spirals into controlled chaos, with generous streams of Hellmann’s mayonnaise getting squeezed onto every sandwich by Samberg as he says, “This is how I make friends” and sings, “I’ll squirt you while I am walking by.”
Among the stunned customers is Elle Fanning, who plays the straight face to Samberg’s improv-heavy energy. She looks on and tells him, “You are incredible.” Samberg fires back without missing a beat, “Incredibly lonely.” If the goal is to get viewers humming and craving extra mayo on their sandwiches, Meal Diamond hits every note.
Grocery preferences go full Europop
Instacart’s “Bananas” spot leans into over-the-top ’80s Europop energy with Ben Stiller and Benson Boone as a retro disco-pop duo battling it out on a glittering stage. Directed by Spike Jonze, the 30-second commercial highlights Instacart’s new “Preference Picker” tool by turning grocery pickiness into performance art. Stiller and Boone harmonize about choosing bananas just the way you like them, using the app’s feature. As the duet escalates, Boone shows off with a dramatic mid-song backflip, prompting Stiller’s character to try and match him.
That attempt ends with Stiller crashing spectacularly into the drum kit on stage, underscoring the absurd rivalry and keeping the energy chaotic and fun. The spot closes with Ben falling off the stage and the tagline “Bananas just how you like,” a playful nod to the new Preference Picker, which helps Instacart customers choose banana ripeness and other grocery details with precision.
BUDWEISER UNVEILS PATRIOTIC NEW SUPER BOWL AD HONORING ‘DEEP-ROOTED AMERICAN HERITAGE’
A ski lesson with Super Bowl stakes
Michelob ULTRA makes its Super Bowl debut with “The ULTRA Instructor,” starring Kurt Russell and Lewis Pullman in a spot that blends winter sports intensity with laid-back beer humor. The 60-second commercial casts Russell as a legendary ski instructor training Pullman’s character to unlock a competitive edge, where bragging rights and rounds of ULTRA are on the line. The training montage leans into Russell’s coaching persona, complete with a playful callback to his role as Herb Brooks in Miracle. As Pullman sharpens his skis and pushes through drills, Russell delivers the familiar command, “Again,” turning a friendly ski session into a mock high-stakes competition.
The contrast between elite-level motivation and low-pressure rewards keeps the tone light while tapping into sports nostalgia. Directed by Joseph Kosinski, the spot also features Olympic snowboarder Chloe Kim and NHL champion T.J. Oshie, reinforcing Michelob ULTRA’s connection to Team USA and the Winter Olympics. By merging Super Bowl spectacle with Olympic energy, Michelob ULTRA positions itself as the beer for competition, camaraderie and winning moments on and off the slopes.
A health message takes the Super Bowl stage
Ro makes its Super Bowl debut with “Healthier on Ro,” starring Serena Williams in a rare healthcare-focused Big Game spot. This time, the direct-to-patient company uses the moment to talk about GLP-1 medications in a broader way. Instead of framing them as a quick fix for weight loss, the ad positions them as a tool for overall health.
In the commercial, Williams speaks candidly about her own experience using GLP-1s through Ro. Over the past year, she says she has lost 34 pounds. As a result, she has eased stress on her knees and stabilized her blood sugar. She also points to improvements in her cholesterol levels and overall heart health.
More importantly, Williams focuses on how the program fits into her life. “I feel better now than I have in years,” she says. The message stays centered on feeling stronger and more like herself, rather than chasing a number on the scale. For Ro, the ad marks a major step. It brings healthcare and GLP-1 conversations into a space usually dominated by snacks, beer and cars. Airing during Super Bowl LX, the spot reflects how wellness brands are increasingly using the Big Game to normalize treatment, reduce stigma and reach a mainstream audience through personal stories.
Pepsi flips the cola wars in a polar-powered spot
Pepsi takes a playful jab at soda rivalries with “The Choice,” a 30-second commercial directed by Taika Waititi that brings the classic Pepsi Challenge to life. At the center of the ad is a cola-loving polar bear, a nod to the iconic mascot long associated with Coca-Cola, who sits down for a blind taste test between Pepsi Zero Sugar and Coke Zero Sugar. When taste alone determines the winner, he surprisingly picks Pepsi, exposing a phenomenon Pepsi refers to as the “Pepsi Paradox,” where people prefer Pepsi once brand labels and bias disappear.
Set to Queen’s “I Want to Break Free,” the bear’s initial shock turns into a whimsical journey of self-discovery, complete with a humorous therapist cameo by Waititi himself and a concert-style celebration that evokes a memorable kiss-cam moment, with the tagline, “You deserve taste.” The ad leans into Pepsi’s decades-long cola rivalry by turning an age-old debate into a lighthearted story about taste and identity, challenging viewers to rethink which cola they’d choose when all labels are removed.
Take my quiz: How safe is your online security?
Think your devices and data are truly protected? Take this quick quiz to see where your digital habits stand. From passwords to Wi-Fi settings, you’ll get a personalized breakdown of what you’re doing right and what needs improvement. Take my Quiz here: Cyberguy.com.
Kurt’s key takeaways
Super Bowl commercials have always reflected the moment we are living in. In 2026, that moment feels louder, stranger, more emotional and far more expensive. For example, some beer ads lean into chaos and humor. Meanwhile, food brands embrace full-on absurdity. At the same time, healthcare companies are stepping onto football’s biggest stage. Still, the common thread among them is ambition. At $10 million per slot, brands are not just buying airtime. Instead, they are buying a chance to be remembered. Some commercials will land iconic moments. Others will fade by halftime. In the end, one thing is clear. The Super Bowl is no longer just a game with ads. It is an advertising event that happens to include football.
CLICK HERE TO DOWNLOAD THE FOX NEWS APP
With Super Bowl ads now costing $10 million for 30 seconds, which commercials actually feel worth the price? Let us know by writing to us at Cyberguy.com.
Sign up for my FREE CyberGuy Report
Get my best tech tips, urgent security alerts and exclusive deals delivered straight to your inbox. Plus, you’ll get instant access to my Ultimate Scam Survival Guide – free when you join my CYBERGUY.COM newsletter.
Copyright 2026 CyberGuy.com. All rights reserved.
A long time ago, in 2004, the Federal Communications Commission laid down a rule designed to prevent a monopoly: No one company could broadcast to more than 39 percent of all the TV households in the United States. But then Donald Trump returned to the White House in 2025. Brendan Carr became FCC chairman and immediately kicked off a deregulatory initiative called “Delete, Delete, Delete,” in which Carr vowed to get rid of “every rule, regulation, or guidance document” that placed “unnecessary regulatory burdens” on companies. And within months, Nexstar, which already owned over 200 stations nationwide and had hit its ownership cap, announced that it had entered an agreement to purchase its rival, Tegna, for an estimated $6.2 billion — something that could only happen, however, if Carr agreed to change the FCC’s rules.
If you ask Nexstar why it’s pursuing a merger that would give it control of over 80 percent of the market, it’d point to Big Tech as the culprit. As advertisers take their money to Netflix, YouTube, and other digital streamers, linear television — the local television news, the broadcast affiliates, the basic cable networks — has suffered, forcing them to consolidate and shut down newsrooms. In that sense, Nexstar argued, the merger would help it compete for ad revenue with the streaming services, thereby building more robust local journalism. However, the merger’s opponents believe that this is a basic violation of antitrust laws and principles — not to mention the danger of letting one company have editorial control over the vast majority of America’s local television newsrooms.
But the second Trump administration handles regulatory hurdles a little differently than others, and companies have found that it’s faster to get what they want if they bypass the agencies and talk (read: suck up) to Trump directly. And when Nexstar did so publicly, it confirmed its opponents’ fears about political influence. Last September, in the fraught weeks after the fatal shooting of Charlie Kirk, Nexstar announced it would no longer broadcast Jimmy Kimmel Live! — a response to Carr’s claim that the FCC could revoke the broadcast licenses of TV stations that aired the comedian’s comments related to Kirk. It briefly led to ABC suspending Kimmel’s show, though ABC and Nexstar soon reversed their decision after a massive nationwide backlash and an ABC boycott.
However, Nexstar’s loyalty to Trump himself was not enough to win over his most powerful MAGA supporters. Newsmax, a cable news network with a deeply pro-Trump bent, and its CEO, longtime Trump donor and outside adviser Chris Ruddy, filed a lawsuit objecting to the merger, claiming that Nexstar’s anticompetitive behavior would force channels like his off the air with steeper carriage fees. He specifically accused Nexstar of jacking up the fees for stations to carry Newsmax, while offering its similar network, NewsNation, for much cheaper.
The Nexstar-Tegna MAGA makeover then took a more subtle turn. NewsNation hired the pro-Trump Fox News commentator Katie Pavlich and gave her her own primetime show. (The network had already hired a slew of former Fox journalists as well.) Around this time, a political group called Keep News Local began airing ads in DC that seemed to directly address Trump, praising him for having “defeated the fake news monopolies before through independent voices and local news” and claiming that the Nexstar-Tegna merger was “crucial for MAGA to survive.” (A little self-contradictory and mildly illogical, but it’s the kind of stuff that Trump likes to hear.) When I last spoke to Ruddy in February, I asked if he’d worried that the dark money going into Keep News Local would sway Trump, and he chose his words carefully: “I think at the end of the day, Trump makes up his own mind. I’m not sure he’s going to be influenced by an ad campaign.”
For months, no one could accurately predict if Trump would override Carr’s wishes and bless the deal, as he’s often done for other companies facing regulatory scrutiny. Trump’s Truth Social posts about the merger have been a good indicator of how precarious the merger has been and who’s been able to influence him at any given moment: Last November, he blasted the deal as an “EXPANSION OF THE FAKE NEWS NETWORKS,” but by February, he posted that the deal would “help knock out the Fake News because there will be more competition.”
Several current and former NewsNation employees told Status at the time that they feared that the parent company was steering NewsNation away from the centrist, “unbiased” reputation they’d long cultivated. “A lot of people within the network believe that the network has gone hard right to appeal to Trump and Brendan Carr,” one former employee told Status. Coincidentally, days before the deal was finalized, NewsNation began ramping up its explicitly pro-Trump content, tweeting a clip of CNN’s Kaitlan Collins being berated by White House press secretary Karoline Leavitt, along with the comment “Just going to leave this here.”
When Trump greenlit the merger in mid-March, but before the FCC’s three commissioners could vote on whether to waive the ownership cap, Nexstar and Tegna immediately announced a new complication: Tegna and Nexstar had already started merging. Tegna was no more and CEO Mike Steib had already sold $22.6 million of his company stock.
In response, eight state attorneys general and satellite TV operator DirectTV, which had already been planning to file separate federal antitrust suits against the merger, asked US District Judge Troy Nunley in Sacramento for an emergency restraining order that would prevent Nexstar from taking over Tegna’s assets. The order was granted on March 27th and on April 17, Nunley issued a formal injunction, ruling that Tegna must be operated as an independent financial entity, and Nexstar must take steps to ensure it remains separate from Tegna before further legal proceedings.
For now, Nunley has allowed the states and DirecTV to combine their cases, in which both argue that the merger was a clear violation of antitrust laws and would crush news competition.
Meanwhile, Republicans and Democrats in Congress are furious at Carr. On March 30th, Sens. Ted Cruz (R-TX) and Maria Cantwell (D-WA) sent the chairman a joint letter admonishing him for allowing his staff to waive the regulations to let the merger pass, instead of having the full commission of political appointees — one from the Biden administration — vote on it. “Under these circumstances,” they wrote, “any subsequent vote risks being largely procedural rather than a genuine exercise of commission responsibility.” They also pointed out that their hasty approval without the commission’s approval would now complicate the merger financially: “In a transaction of this scale, where integration proceeds quickly and unwinding becomes impractical, delay in judicial review can insulate the decision from meaningful challenge.” Notably, though they share similar ideological views on the media and deregulation, Cruz and Carr have frequently clashed over how to achieve their objectives. Cruz previously slammed Carr as a “mafioso,” for instance, for the way he’d used the FCC to silence Kimmel.
But even if it’s legally paused, the journalistic merger’s fallout has started to hit local news. NPR’s David Folkenfirk reported on Tuesday that Tegna journalists had already started receiving orders to stop broadcasting content from major broadcasters like ABC, CBS, and NBC — media outlets being targeted by Carr — and instead begin airing content from Nexstar’s NewsNation.
- Brendan Carr’s views on using the FCC to punish major broadcasters was outlined pretty extensively in the chapter he authored in Project 2025, an initiative led by the conservative Heritage Foundation on how to reform the federal bureaucracy to be more favorable to the American right.
- Exactly how much is local television losing to digital? According to industry publication NewscastStudio, in an investor call defending the purchase, Nexstar chairman Perry Sook cited a market research study from Borrell Associates, which found that “digital advertising in local markets exceeds $100 billion, compared to just $25 billion for local linear television advertising, with nearly two-thirds of digital ad dollars flowing to five major technology companies.”
- If you want to see exactly how much Keep Local News was trying to suck up to Trump, the ads are archived here.
- The Vergecast has a long-running segment called “Brendan Carr is a dummy.”
- The LA Times reported on last week’s preliminary hearings in front of Nunley, and how lawyers for Nexstar, the states, and DirecTV plan to argue their case.
- The Desk has insights from Kirk Varner, a former TV newsroom director, on how the case could go.
- Andrew Liptak covered Nexstar’s previous acquisition sprees for The Verge in 2018.
- Adi Robertson walks through exactly how the Kimmel suspension was an attack on free speech.
- Brendan Carr keeps trying to convince people that he’s not threatening to suspend broadcast licenses for reporting on unfavorable things like the Iran war, reports Lauren Feiner.
- The Vergecast has a long-running segment called “Brendan Carr is a dummy.”
Follow topics and authors from this story to see more like this in your personalized homepage feed and to receive email updates.
NEWYou can now listen to Fox News articles!
A Chinese-built humanoid robot beat the human half-marathon world record in Beijing on Sunday, marking a breakthrough moment in a high-stakes global race for technological dominance.
A robot developed by Chinese smartphone maker Honor completed the 21-kilometer (13-mile) race in 50 minutes and 26 seconds, beating the human record of about 57 minutes set by Uganda’s Jacob Kiplimo last month.
The performance marked a dramatic improvement from last year’s inaugural event, when the top robot finished in more than 2 hours and 40 minutes.
Dozens of humanoid robots competed alongside about 12,000 human runners, navigating a parallel course to avoid collisions.
CHINA’S COMPACT HUMANOID ROBOT SHOWS OFF BALANCE AND FLIPS
A robot crosses the finish line in the Beijing E-Town Half Marathon and Humanoid Robot Half-Marathon held in the outskirts of Beijing on April 19, 2026. (Andy Wong/AP)
Nearly half of the robots ran using autonomous navigation, while others relied on remote control, organizers said.
Despite the breakthrough, the race still saw glitches, with some robots stumbling at the start or veering into barriers.
Engineers said the winning robot was designed to mimic elite athletes, featuring long legs of about 37 inches and advanced cooling systems to sustain performance.
US TARGETS CHINESE ROBOTS OVER SECURITY FEARS
“Looking ahead, some of these technologies might be transferred to other areas,” said Du Xiaodi, an engineer with the Honor team. “For example, structural reliability and liquid-cooling technology could be applied in future industrial scenarios.”
Team members celebrate next to the winning Honor Lightning humanoid robot during a medal ceremony after the second Beijing E-Town Half Marathon and Humanoid Robot Half Marathon in Beijing, China, on April 19, 2026. (Maxim Shemetov/Reuters)
Spectators reacted with a mix of amazement and unease at the machines’ rapid progress.
“It’s the first time robots have surpassed humans, and that’s something I never imagined,” Sun Zhigang, who attended the event with his son, told The Associated Press.
HUMANOID ROBOTS HIT MASS PRODUCTION IN CHINA
“The robots’ speed far exceeds that of humans,” spectator Wang Wen told the outlet. “This may signal the arrival of sort of a new era.”
A robot starts alongside human runners at the Beijing E-Town Half Marathon and Humanoid Half Marathon on the outskirts of Beijing on April 19, 2026. (Ng Han Guan/AP)
Experts say the race highlights China’s accelerating push to dominate robotics and artificial intelligence, even as widespread commercial use of humanoid robots remains limited, according to Reuters. The experts said Chinese robotics firms are still working to develop the AI software needed for humanoids to match the efficiency of human factory workers.
Runners take pictures of a humanoid robot during the second Beijing E-Town Half Marathon and Humanoid Robot Half Marathon in Beijing on April 19, 2026. (Haruna Furuhashi/Pool Photo via AP)
“The future will definitely be an AI era,” engineering student Chu Tianqi told Reuters. “If people don’t know how to use AI now … they will definitely become obsolete.”
CLICK HERE TO DOWNLOAD THE FOX NEWS APP
The competition underscores a broader technological race between China and the United States, as Beijing invests heavily in advanced robotics as part of its long-term economic strategy.
The Associated Press and Reuters contributed to this report.
According to Nikkei Asia, even as suppliers ramp up DRAM production, manufacturers are only expected to meet 60 percent of demand by the end of 2027. SK Group chairman has even said that shortages could last until 2030.
The world’s largest memory makers — Samsung, SK Hynix, and Micron — are all working to add new fabrication capacity, but almost none of it will be online until at least 2027, if not 2028. SK opened a fab in Cheongju in February, but that is the only increase in production among the three for 2026.
Nikkei says that production would need to increase by 12 percent a year in 2026 and 2027 to meet demand. But according to Counterpoint Research, an increase of only 7.5 percent is planned.
The new facilities will primarily focus on producing high-bandwidth memory (HBM), which is used in AI data centers. With the companies already prioritizing HBM over general-purpose DRAM used in computers and phones, it’s not clear how much these new fabs will help alleviate the price crunch facing consumer electronics. Everything from phones and laptops, to VR headsets and gaming handhelds have seen price increases due to the RAM shortage.
-
Florida6 minutes agoSouth Florida faith leaders call for Miami mental health center to finally open
-
Georgia11 minutes ago
Georgia receiver and draft prospect Zachariah Branch arrested for misdemeanor obstruction
-
Hawaii18 minutes agoKanakaʻole, Zane ʻohana transform Hawaiian cultural practices into captivating visual arts | Maui Now
-
Idaho24 minutes ago‘Unrelenting’: Statehouse reporters recap 2026 legislative session in Idaho Falls – East Idaho News
-
Illinois29 minutes agoWeather service assessing damage across Iowa, Illinois and Missouri
-
Indiana36 minutes agoProjecting the Indiana Fever’s 2026 Starting Lineup
-
Iowa42 minutes ago5 people wounded in shooting near University of Iowa campus, including 3 students
-
Kansas48 minutes agoKansas Governor signs Caleb’s Law, targeting online sextortion of minors
