McDonald's has removed a Christmas advert produced using Artificial Intelligence following encountering considerable criticism on social media.
The brief spot was created via AI video tools and was originally released online for the Dutch branch of McDonald's on 6 December.
Audience Reaction and Removal
Soon after it aired, audiences online lambasted the use of AI in the advert. Several described it as "uncanny" and "poorly edited".
"This incident is an important learning as we investigate the proper use of Artificial Intelligence," commented a spokesperson from the company.
The commercial was developed for McDonald's by Dutch agency TBWA\Neboko and US firm The Sweetshop. It portrayed a series of situations that can go wrong during the holidays, using the tagline "the worst time of the year".
The Movement of AI in Advertising
Adverts that incorporate generative AI have become a growing trend among major corporations, particularly for the Christmas season.
- Coca-Cola has also released consecutive AI-created Christmas ads.
- Inherent Limitations: Because segments produced using current AI video tools are prone to degrade the more extended they are, most such clips tend to be about short in length.
- Industry Concerns: The video also sparked concerns about automation in the production sector, with some commenters stating it could affect work for production staff.
Response from the Creators
After the commercial being pulled, The Sweetshop's head, Melanie Bridge, defended the project.
She stated, the production process took "over a month and a half" and involved producing "thousands of takes" which were then crafted afterward "in the same way we would on any standard production".
"This was not an experiment," she commented. "It was a finished piece."
Divisive Audience Sentiment
While the McDonald's ad was mostly panned, the response for some AI-assisted campaigns has been varied.
For instance, a recent AI-generated Christmas spot from Coca-Cola according to analysis achieved a 61% "positive feedback" from the public.
However, several companies have also encountered criticism for employing the technique in advertising. Italian brand Valentino, for example, was lambasted for ads that critics called "low-effort" and "disturbing".
The incident illustrates the ongoing conversation within the advertising and creative industries about the trade-off between AI efficiency and human craftsmanship.
