Robotic Evolution

Scott Beale over at Laughing Squid recently posted this amazing commercial from Germany. Scott writes:

Evolution of Technology is a fantastic ad created by Scholz&Friends Group for the German electronics store Saturn that shows an evolutionary process from dinosaur robots to modern androids.

Evolution of Technology

(Shawn Connally and Bruce Stewart are guest bloggers)

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IWood

Yay Zoids! I haven’t thought about those in years. Bitty ‘botic dinos FTW!
nanuq

“Am I the only one who’s now desperate for a robotic dinosaur movie?”

All the Mechagodzilla movies don’t count?

Mechagodzilla
Takuan

was the Steam-Rex coal or oil fired?
jeffguevin

Hey, robot sabretooths didn’t coexist with robot T. Rexes! Couldn’t they have done some research?
Daemon

Sexy Robots: the final stage of robot evolution.
the Other michael

#14 — do some research of your own! There are some of your so-called “fossils” showing the prints of an Asimo alongside the SteamRex. Evolution is a fraud.
Laroquod

What *is* it with all of the tentacle/squid/cephalod references on Boing Boing?
Nesbitt

#31 Fred Rated asked “…android cheesecake. Final stage of machine evolution?” Yes sir, we believe it is.
Takuan

I’m sure I don’t know what you’re talking about.
Anonymous

“We hate expensive” in German
is a neat expression and comes across somewhat awkward. The strange thing is that “expensive” is treated as the object in this sentence. It’s a nice wordplay and stands out which makes it memorable.
Bonnie

This would have made the best Front 242 video ever!
kiddr01

that was really nice – lovely swingy-hip animation on the female android at the end!
Agent 86

laroquod, some is from a love of this
Anonymous

This commercial has a really eyecatching idea and beginning but is totally spoiled by the too obvious usage of a half naked/half android woman, and the dull claim kills it completely.
In my (german) eyes it’s just a disturbing advert: Works for seconds, annoys for days. Awkward.
13strong

@ #5

MOJAVE: “13 strong , you say that like it’s a bad thing. Sex sells. Advertising 101.”

Well, that’s because it is. Yes, “sex sells”. Just because something makes money doesn’t make it a good thing.

Thank the gods I didn’t learn ethics in Advertising 101.
TheGibson

The phrase “modern androids” made me laugh.
aperson23

Too cool
blackbrrrd

Kevin Kelly’s blog, the Technium, has a little different take on this. Evolution of silico-metallic forms must comply with the forces of nature (just as carbon-based forms must). This will lead to interesting diversity in bots. He says it better than I…

http://www.kk.org/thetechnium/
13strong

Cool. Though as usual ad men can’t resist having a sexy woman in there somewhere.

Unless they’re saying that women are the pinnacle of evolution, which would be a refreshing change!
Ugly Canuck

Ach, the German suits it well.
Anonymous

PZ Myers pointed out yesterday that this is a misleading representation of evolution.
holtt

kiltreiser, I’d tap that meme.
Mojave

13 strong , you say that like it’s a bad thing. Sex sells. Advertising 101.
kiltreiser

Am I the only one who’s now desperate for a robotic dinosaur movie?
Boba Fett Diop

This commercial totally ignores evidence challenging the theory of robotic evolution. Robotic systems are too complex to have evolved on their own without the guiding hand of a designer. Teach the controversy!
failix

I never watch TV, but this would have been worth it. Nice find. (I hate that store though, way too expensive.)

Lol @#7 XD
skore

Just to translate this for all the non-Germans out there:

“The Selection was tough, but now its here: The strongest technology of all time – relentlessly inexpensive.

Saturn: we HATE expensive”

I’m a little touchy on their taglines these days. They started of with “Geiz ist geil” – “stingy is awesome/hot” – “geil” having a well established sexual connotation on German, being an exclusively sexual word to begin with meaning “being aroused” (so not the other way around where donkeys suddenly mean peoples behinds).

The new tagline however makes me feel like being part of your daily two-minutes-hate. I’m all for replacing religion with technology, but can’t we just skip the Ã¼ber-emotional?

Technologies are tools. I see no need to fall in love with them or any other kind of engagement. I also find the emphasis on cheap devices a tad anachronistic these days.
Anonymous

Mmmmmmmm … steampron.
Ugly Canuck

Yes.
Mechagodzilla!
Fred Rated

Yeah, I saw that ad a couple of months ago at a Saturn in Munich. I was transfixed up until the android cheesecake. Final stage of machine evolution? A fembot hawking vacuums, blenders, and Bratz Ponyz for Nintendo DS.

Nice CG. Stupid fucking concept.
ill lich

Bahhh. . . we all know that on the 8th day God created robots; there was no evolution involved.
Anonymous

zoids!
DelicateFlower

Mojave – Sexy *men* also sell. ;)
W. James Au

The most impressive thing about this spot: an advertising agency got Saturn to spend probably close to a million goddamn Euros to make an epic commercial that has NOT A THING WHATSOEVER to do with their products.
W. James Au

The most impressive thing about this spot: an advertising agency got Saturn to spend probably close to a million goddamn Euros to make an epic commercial that has NOT A THING WHATSOEVER to do with their products.
Anonymous

RILF!

dan
nanite2000

Zoids!

:-)