Intel: Experience Business As Usual

At the Super Bowl and then subsequently at the Grammys, Intel premiered their "Intel: Experience Amazing" ad:



When I first saw this ad, I had three thoughts:

• Roll over (in your grave) Beethoven!
• I can't wait for the epic battle between the Intel swoosh and the Nike swoosh
• Hmm, let me go back and take a look at how Intel's diversity team did on this ad...

Well, I'm sad to report that there aren't any "role surprises" here. It's not the most egregious example I've seen, but still disappointing.

There were 17 men shown, 9 women (34%, so about twice the average, but still not 50%). (I'll admit, a couple of times where figures were shown in shadow, I had to guess at the gender, so feel free to correct me if I'm wrong, Intel.)

As usual, men get to handle pretty much all the computers in the ad, play all the video games, and participate in the competitive activities.

Women mostly do solo activities and are acted upon by the computers and men in the ad.

So overall, I give this ad a "C".

Would it have been THAT hard to let a woman solder? To show her driving the race car? To include ONE woman playing a video game?

More details:

In this ad, men and boys:
Hold a computer chip
Use a prosthetic hand
Drive a race car
Cheer on a race car
Ride fantastical beasts in a video game
Use a flying squirrel (bat) suit
Ride a BMX Bike
Rise up from a wheelchair
Solder onto a computer board
Play video games on a big stage in competition (three men playing in the shot, no women)
DJ at a dance club
Draw things on a woman's face using a computer

Women and girls:
Jump
Play the violin
Swim
Run in the forest
Look on while a boy uses a prosthetic hand
Dance while a man (and possibly a woman) monitor her on the computer
DJ in a studio in a short skirt with a pretty lamp on the table
Have beautiful things drawn on their face
Model and smile, covered in butterflies.