Radar - by nexxworks: $200B for AI, China’s Robot Boom & Super Bowl’s Best Ads

The AI race is moving fast, and the big players are making their moves. Europe and the US are announcing massive investments in  AI.

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Meanwhile, China isn’t waiting around—Jack Ma is back, investment is flowing, and humanoid robots are becoming surprisingly affordable.

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At the same time, AI is changing customer service—but not for the better. Companies are cutting costs and pushing customers toward bots instead of real support.

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And when it comes to marketing, AI companies still struggle to connect with people.

Let’s break it all down.

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Europe’s $200B AI gamble – Too late or just in time?

Europe wants to prove it can still compete in AI, and at the AI Summit in Paris, they made a bold announcement: a $200 billion investment into AI infrastructure.

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It sounds impressive, but the reality is a little more complicated.

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Peter Hinssen summed up the skepticism:

• Nobody knows where the $200 billion will actually come from. It’s a massive commitment, but is there a real plan to fund it?
• Will companies actually use it? Tech giants like BMW and Siemens already rely on AWS and Microsoft for AI. Why would they suddenly switch to a European alternative?
• France is leading this, but what about the rest of Europe? Some critics say this is more about Macron positioning France as an AI leader than a real European-wide initiative.

There’s also a big energy factor at play. AI requires huge amounts of power, and Macron is betting on France’s nuclear plants to keep up. As Peter joked, "In the US, it’s ‘drill, baby, drill.’ In France? Plug, baby, plug.”

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So, is this the start of a European AI revolution? Or just another ambitious promise that struggles to take off?

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China: Why humanoid robots are closer than you think

While Europe is still planning, China is already building. Pascal Coppens explained how China’s AI landscape is shifting fast:

• Jack Ma is back after years of staying out of the spotlight, signaling a new wave of entrepreneurship.
• China’s "six little dragons"—new AI startups—are emerging, many focused on cutting-edge AI and robotics.
• Humanoid robots are no longer just sci-fi. They’re being mass-produced, and the price is dropping fast.

Right now, China’s Unitree sells humanoid robots for $13,000. That’s already cheaper than most alternatives, and they’re working to lower the cost to $5,000–$7,000.

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“At that price, people will actually start buying them for homes,” Pascal explained. “China already dominates in robotics manufacturing. They’re focused on making AI-powered robots useful, while the West is still mostly focused on software.”

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The big question: Will humanoid robots go mainstream by 2030? Pascal believes they will. If China continues lowering prices and scaling production, robots could soon be as common as smart home devices.

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AI & customer service – Are companies making It worse?

AI has the potential to make customer service faster, smoother, and smarter—so why are so many companies using it to push customers away?

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Steven Van Belleghem shared a frustrating example:
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📞 HP was caught intentionally adding an extra 15-minute delay to customer service calls—to push people toward chatbots instead of human help.

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“When do people call customer service? After they’ve already tried self-service and failed. Making them wait even longer is just punishment,” Steven said. And HP isn’t the only one. Airlines, telecom companies, and even banks are cutting real support in favor of automation—even when it frustrates customers.

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The result?

• Customer satisfaction is at an all-time low, according to Forrester.
• Companies are saving money in the short term, but losing trust in the long run.

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AI should be improving service, not making it harder to reach real help. The companies that get this right—using AI to enhance customer service instead of replace it—will be the real winners.

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Super bowl ads: AI missed the mark

This year’s Super Bowl ads gave us a reality check: AI companies still don’t know how to market themselves to regular people.

Biggest Fail: OpenAI’s First Super Bowl Ad

Steven summed it up: "This was a massive missed opportunity. They had the perfect chance to introduce ChatGPT to millions of new users, and instead, they made something people didn’t connect with."

• It was black-and-white, abstract, and hard to understand.
• Instead of showing how ChatGPT can help everyday users, it focused on AI in a vague, artistic way.
• It felt like it was made for AI engineers, not the general public.

Biggest Win: Hellman’s Mayonnaise

• They recreated the iconic "When Harry Met Sally" diner scene—but this time, the punchline was about mayonnaise on a sandwich.
• It was funny, nostalgic, and easy to understand—everything OpenAI’s ad wasn’t.

What does this tell us?

AI companies still struggle to tell real, human stories. Meanwhile, brands that understand emotion, humor, and storytelling continue to win.

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Catch the full episode

Got thoughts, hot takes, or even a favorite moment? Drop a comment—we’re all ears (and we love a good debate)!

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