Electric vehicle startup Polestar on Sunday revealed its first Super Bowl ad that took a shot at rivals, including Tesla Inc TSLA and legacy stalwart Volkswagen Group VWAGY.
What Happened: The Swedish company, which is backed by China’s Zhejiang Geely Holding Group Co GELYF and Volvo Cars Group, unveiled a 30-second advertisement named “No Compromises” for its Polestar 2 electric sedan.
The commercial centers around an approach the automaker says sets it apart from rivals.
Without naming anyone, the commercial notes how Polestar promises “no dieselgate,” and “no conquering Mars,” with obvious reference to Volkswagen’s infamous dieselgate scandal and Tesla CEO Elon Musk’s dream to colonize Mars.
“This is the perfect place to further raise awareness of our brand in the US, and beyond,” Polestar CEO Thomas Ingenlath said.
A Tesla fan pointed out on the microblogging site Twitter that Polestar paid $7 million to play the ad at the mega-sporting event and took a "bold strategy" route to take digs at rivals including the world’s richest man. Musk replied to the post with a laughing emoticon.
See Also: Tesla Rival Polestar Could Reach $21B Deal To Merge With SPAC Gores Guggenheim Today
Why It Matters: Polestar was launched in 2017 and has a manufacturing facility in China.
The electric vehicle startup last month said it achieved the global sales target of delivering 29,000 vehicles in 2021. Seen as a Tesla rival, the company last year announced plans to launch three new cars over the next three years, including an electric sports utility vehicle.
The automaker in October recalled all of its Polestar 2 electric vehicles — marketed as a rival to Tesla’s Model 3 — to fix a software glitch that could cause the vehicle to lose power while driving.
Earlier this year, Polestar said it would assemble its third model at a Volvo plant in South Carolina. The startup is expected to make a Nasdaq debut sometime this year after a merger with SPAC Gores Guggenheim GGPI.
Photo: Courtesy of Heisenberg Media via Wikimedia
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