Google takes swipe at cryptocurrency in Pixel 3 advert

Google took a shot at crypto during an advert for its new phone, the Pixel 3.

The advert showcases a feature which allows Google Assistant to screen calls and tell you why someone’s calling. If it’s a telemarketer, the call can be instantly marked as spam.

During the ad, one of the actors tells the other that his electricity bill is very high that month. “Well cryptocurrency mining takes a lot of energy,” he explains. “Cryptocurrency, that money’s not real,” she replies.

“Yeah, well I got news for you — money isn’t real,” he rebuts. “You gonna live that lie?” she responds.

You can watch the advert in full here:

It is true that mining cryptocurrency is notoriously energy inefficient. In August, Futurism reported that the amount of energy used to world’s Bitcoin network is equivalent to the total energy consumption of Ireland.

But Google’s crypto swipe is unlikely to go down well with crypto bulls, who have already criticised the company for banning crypto ads in June. Google…