McDonald's has pulled a Christmas commercial produced via AI following encountering significant criticism on social media.
The 45-second spot was developed via AI-generated video and was originally uploaded publicly for McDonald's Netherlands on 6 December.
Social Media Criticism and Decision to Pull
Soon after it aired, viewers on social media criticized the employment of AI in the film. A number of described it as "disturbing" and "poorly edited".
"This incident serves as an key lesson as we investigate the effective application of generative technology," said a statement from the company.
The advert was developed for the brand by Netherlands-based company TBWA\Neboko and American production company The Sweetshop. It showed a series of situations that might go awry over the festive season, under the tagline "not the most wonderful time of the year".
The Trend of AI Commercials
Campaigns that include AI tools have emerged as a increasing phenomenon among large corporations, especially for the Christmas campaign season.
- Another beverage giant has also launched back-to-back AI-generated Christmas commercials.
- Technical Challenges: As clips produced using current AI video tools are prone to become unstable the longer they run, most AI video outputs tend to be only short in length.
- Industry Concerns: The ad also provoked worries about automation in the creative sector, with some critics noting it could affect opportunities for production staff.
Defense from the Creators
After the commercial being pulled, a producer's head, Melanie Bridge, spoke in support of the advert.
Bridge claimed, the development took "over a month and a half" and involved creating "thousands of takes" which were then edited afterward "just as we would on any high-craft production".
"This was not an experiment," she said. "We consider it a film."
Mixed Audience Sentiment
While the McDonald's ad was mostly panned, the sentiment for other AI-generated holiday ads has been divisive.
For instance, a recent AI-created Christmas spot from Coca-Cola according to analysis achieved a significant "positive feedback" from viewers.
However, various brands have also encountered scrutiny for using the technique in advertising. Luxury fashion house Valentino, for example, was lambasted for advertisements that some called "lazy" and "uncanny".
The episode underscores the ongoing conversation within the advertising and production sectors about the balance between AI efficiency and creative integrity.
