X launches AI BrandRanx tracking to prove Super Bowl impact

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Social media platform X unveiled real-time tracking of Super Bowl advertisement conversations using its new AI-powered BrandRanx tool, marking a push to reclaim relevance with advertisers after turbulence in its ad business following Elon Musk’s takeover.

“The Super Bowl is the biggest moment on X every year. Conversation spikes, brand engagement on the platform spikes and we want to take an ownership position on that,” — Monique Pintarelli, head of global advertising at X  

The new system — driven by Grok AI — monitored millions of posts, replies, and reposts from Jan. 25 (the NFL Conference Championships) through Super Bowl Sunday to analyze which brands’ ads generated the most conversation, positive sentiment, reposts, and disruption on the platform.  

Brand buzz in real time

BrandRanx’s dynamic rankings showed Apple Music at the top of overall conversation on X, largely fueled by the halftime show featuring Bad Bunny. Pokémon and Dunkin’ followed closely behind in discussion volume.

X also highlighted engagement metrics showing Budweiser, Pokémon, and Apple Music with strong positive sentiment, while State Farm and Google’s Gemini saw high virality. Interestingly, Kraft Mac & Cheese, which didn’t air a national TV spot, performed as the most disruptive brand by driving organic conversation.  

The move to spotlight real-time ad chat reflects X’s strategy to show it remains a central cultural hub for live events — especially around the biggest ad moment of the year — and to attract brands seeking measurable engagement.  

A broader ad landscape

While only a handful of tech ads like Google’s made the BrandRanx rankings, many AI-focused campaigns ran during the broadcast, with mixed success in social chatter and consumer buzz. X is positioning BrandRanx as a new standard for measuring cultural impact in the era of social-first advertising