McDonald's has pulled a holiday advertisement made using generative AI following facing considerable online backlash.
The 45-second ad was produced via AI video tools and was initially published publicly for McDonald's Netherlands on 6 December.
Viewer Response and Decision to Pull
Shortly after its release, viewers on social media criticized the implementation of AI in the commercial. Many called it "creepy" and "poorly edited".
"This incident represents an key lesson as we explore the proper use of Artificial Intelligence," stated a statement from McDonald's Netherlands.
The advert was produced for the brand by Netherlands-based company TBWA\Neboko and US production company The Sweetshop. It showed a series of situations that often go badly over the holidays, with the tagline "the worst time of the year".
A Growing Movement of AI in Advertising
Commercials that feature AI-created content have emerged as a rising trend among prominent companies, especially for the holiday period.
- Coca-Cola has similarly launched back-to-back AI-created Christmas commercials.
- Inherent Limitations: As segments produced using generative AI are prone to degrade the more extended they are, the majority of such clips tend to be only short in length.
- Industry Concerns: The ad also provoked fears about the replacement of human roles in the advertising industry, with some critics pointing out it might reduce opportunities for production staff.
Defense from the Creators
Following the commercial being pulled, a producer's chief executive, Melanie Bridge, spoke in support of the project.
According to her, the development required "over a month and a half" and involved generating "thousands of takes" which were then edited in post-production "in the same way we would on any high-craft production".
"This wasn't just an experiment," she said. "We consider it a proper commercial."
Divisive Public Reception
While the McDonald's ad was mostly criticized, the sentiment for some AI-assisted campaigns has been divisive.
For instance, a recent AI-generated holiday spot from Coca-Cola reportedly achieved a significant "favorable response" from the public.
However, several companies have also received scrutiny for employing the technique in marketing. Italian fashion house Valentino, for example, was lambasted for advertisements that some called "lazy" and "disturbing".
The episode underscores the ongoing discussion within the marketing and creative sectors about the trade-off between AI efficiency and creative integrity.
