(Maire Clayton, Headline USA) Coca-Cola was hit with backlash after releasing a series of AI-generated holiday ads, sparking critics on social media to call the company “soulless.”
The Atlanta-based conglomerate enlisted the help of three different AI companies to create the ads, according to Forbes.
The ads attempted to pay homage to a 1995 series of ads titled “Holidays Are Coming.”
The original ad featured a convoy of Coca-Cola trucks decorated with lights as it made its way through a town, causing the town to light up with Christmas spirit.
Two AI companies, Silverside AI and Wild Card, took a somewhat different approach to the almost 30 year-old ad.
One focused on a series of quick cuts, which featured AI shots of nature, animals and, like the original, a convoy of trucks.
Secret Level went in a different direction, deciding to include AI-generated people as well.
The founder, Jason Zada, told AdAge the ad was meant to “[borrow] from the original, in terms of tonality and musically, but able to re-imagine it for a whole new generation.”
Social media users were quick to slam the use of AI.
“This is the most soulless Christmas ad i have ever seen,” one user wrote. “My God, this was possibly the closest thing to the opposite of what the old ads felt like.”
This is the most soulless Christmas ad i have ever seen. My God, this was possibly the closest thing to the opposite of what the old ads felt like. This was terrible
— Roddie (@_RoddieX) November 18, 2024
Others blasted the choppiness of the ad.
“[Ten] cuts in 15 seconds, never showing the same thing twice, still looks wrong,” one user wrote. “Truly a powerful technology.”
10 cuts in 15 seconds, never showing the same thing twice, still looks wrong. Truly a powerful technology. https://t.co/Kpa6Vruikr
— Kris Wolfheart (@KrisWolfheart) November 15, 2024
Some called for a boycott because of the insincerity of the new AI ads.
With this creepy AI spot, Coca-Cola can no longer claim 'It's always the real thing'. We normally have gallons of the stuff at Christmas, but this year we'll take a leaf out of Coca-Cola's book and buy the knockoff. Time for a boycott. pic.twitter.com/JXiNqazS06
— James Vargas-Maclean (@JamesHAMaclean) November 15, 2024
“We normally have gallons of the stuff at Christmas, but this year we’ll take a leaf out of Coca-Cola’s book and buy the knockoff,” one user wrote.
Coca-Cola previously established the “Create Real Magic” site in 2023 which wanted artists to combine real art with AI technology to create a hybrid image.
It isn’t the first time its seasonal ads have faced backlash. Left-wing activists have pressured the company over the use of its iconic polar bears to weigh in on social issues including climate change and white privilege.
The Coca-Cola marketing department’s influence over the Christmas season has been undeniable. A 1931 advertising campaign was reportedly among the first to depict Santa Claus as a jolly bearded figure in red, fur-trimmed robes.
