Instead, it went for buzz with paid celeb appearances, including event host Jimmy Fallon and others like Stephen Curry, podcaster Alex Cooper, the Jonas Brothers, and more. The result was a watered-down, cringey, and at times almost QVC-like sales event, which Reddit users immediately dubbed “unwatchable.”

Alphabet’s Google introduced on Wednesday (August 20) a new lineup of Pixel smartphones and gadgets, intensifying its efforts to embed artificial intelligence across a wide ecosystem of products, and it had a well known name to help sell the new products. Julian Satterthwaite reports.