McDonald's has taken down a holiday advert produced using AI after receiving widespread public disapproval.
The short ad was produced via AI video tools and was originally released online for McDonald's Netherlands back on 6 December.
Viewer Response and Removal
Soon after it aired, viewers on social media criticized the use of AI in the advert. Many labeled it "creepy" and "awkwardly stitched together".
"This moment is an key lesson as we investigate the effective use of generative technology," said a spokesperson from McDonald's Netherlands.
The commercial was produced for the brand by Dutch company TBWA\Neboko and American production company The Sweetshop. It depicted a series of situations that might go awry over the Christmas break, with the tagline "the worst time of the year".
The Trend of AI in Advertising
Campaigns that include AI tools have become a growing trend among large companies, particularly for the holiday season.
- Coca-Cola has similarly launched consecutive AI-created holiday ads.
- Inherent Limitations: As videos produced using generative AI are more likely to become unstable the more extended they are, the majority of AI video outputs tend to be about short in length.
- Broader Implications: The ad also provoked worries about the replacement of human roles in the production sector, with some commenters noting it could negatively impact work for camera crews.
Defense from the Creators
After the video's removal, a producer's head, Melanie Bridge, spoke in support of the project.
She stated, the creation took "seven weeks" and involved creating "countless iterations" which were then shaped afterward "in the same way we would on any standard production".
"This was not an AI trick," she commented. "We consider it a film."
Mixed Audience Sentiment
While the Dutch McDonald's commercial was mostly panned, the sentiment for some AI-generated campaigns has been varied.
For instance, a recent AI-generated holiday spot from Coca-Cola according to analysis achieved a significant "positive sentiment rating" from viewers.
However, various brands have likewise encountered backlash for employing the technique in marketing. Luxury brand Valentino, for example, was lambasted for advertisements that some called "lazy" and "uncanny".
The episode illustrates the ongoing conversation within the marketing and production industries about the balance between technological innovation and creative integrity.
