MAM
Hakuhodo Percept creates a TVC to launch Sony’s Sonic laptops
MUMBAI: As the old forms of communication give way to the new innovative machines, Hakuhodo Percept has launched Sony‘s new range of Sonic laptops with in-built subwoofers through a TVC for the Indian market. The film went on air on July 2.
British musician Shlomo and his vocal project ‘Shlomo and the Lip Factory‘ have been used in this TVC. They are seen performing on ‘Moves like Jagger‘ by Maroon 5. Different shots of the group are shown through the Sonic range of laptops. This was done keeping in mind the taste and culture of the current generation. The brand has also initiated what is billed as India‘s first online ‘Beatboxing competition‘ where contestants need to share links of their beatboxing videos on Sony‘s Youtube channel to win a Vaio laptop from the Sonic series.
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Commenting on the TVC, Hakuhodo Percept executive creative directors, Shobhit Mathur and Sabuj Sen Gupta said, “Typically, laptops don‘t give you great sound forcing you to use additional speakers for better sound experience. But all that is about to change as Sony Vaio brings to you a laptop with an in-built subwoofer! Not only will you be able to hear great bass and thump, you will also be able to hear every sound with great clarity and distinction. It‘s a yet another first from Vaio. For us, it all started here. So to corroborate this brief, we devised a campaign with a fusion of A cappella and beat boxing.”
“Our aim was to own the domain of voice & sound. Hence we tied-up with an internationally acclaimed human beat boxer, Shlomo and his latest vocal project ‘Shlomo and the Lip Factory‘ to perform the chartbuster ‘Moves like Jagger‘. We got seven beat boxers, including Shlomo, to recreate the song using only their voices. What‘s interesting is that each one of them has performed their part through a different Vaio thereby creating a never-heard-before orchestra of laptops”, they added.
On the TVC, Sony India, marketing communication head, Ryusuke Fukushima said, “The new television commercial for Vaio aims to highlight the in-built subwoofers of the new Vaio series. After doing our research, we realised that users mostly complain about the quality of sound in their laptops and to redress this issue, Sony announced its new Vaio series with enhanced listening experience.” He added, “To bring out the sound proposition clearly in the TVC, we tied up with internationally acclaimed human beatboxer, Shlomo and his latest vocal project ‘Shlomo and the Lip Factory‘. As part of the campaign, we will also be rolling out print and online advertisements, outdoor and shop-front enhancement and PR activities.”
MAM
Three senior OpenAI infrastructure executives join Meta
Key members of Stargate project move to rival amid aggressive AI spending race.
MUMBAI: Three key architects of OpenAI’s ambitious data centre plans have switched sides and joined Meta Platforms, according to people familiar with the matter. Peter Hoeschele, who played a central role in OpenAI’s high-profile Stargate initiative, is among the new hires. He is joined by Shamez Hemani, who focused on computing strategy and business development, and Anuj Saharan, another leader in the computing organisation. The Information first reported their departure from OpenAI on Thursday.
The moves come as Meta CEO Mark Zuckerberg has pledged to spend aggressively on AI infrastructure. The company is projecting capital expenditure of up to $135 billion this year alone, with hundreds of billions more expected before the end of the decade to support its Meta Superintelligence Labs and new models such as Muse Spark.
OpenAI, which is pushing ahead with massive data centre expansion, had described its early lead in securing computing power as a competitive advantage. Stargate, originally announced last year as a $500 billion venture involving OpenAI, Oracle, and SoftBank, has since become an umbrella term for the company’s broader data centre ambitions. However, the project has seen recent adjustments, including a pause on its UK plans and the decision not to expand the Abilene, Texas site.
A spokesperson for Meta declined to comment, while Hoeschele, Hemani, and Saharan also declined to comment. OpenAI said it was grateful for the contributions of the three employees and remains focused on hiring talent for its infrastructure plans. The company recently brought in former Intel executive Sachin Katti to lead its industrial compute efforts.
In the high-stakes race to build the future of artificial intelligence, talent is proving to be as valuable as computing power itself. Meta’s latest hires suggest the competition for top infrastructure minds is intensifying, even as OpenAI continues to scale its own ambitious projects. The move highlights how quickly the AI talent war is heating up across Silicon Valley.
