McDonald's has removed a holiday advertisement created with generative AI after encountering considerable criticism on social media.
The 45-second spot was created with the help of generative AI clips and was initially published publicly for McDonald's Netherlands back on 6 December.
Viewer Response and Removal
Soon after it aired, viewers on social media lambasted the use of AI in the advert. Several described it as "disturbing" and "jarringly assembled".
"This experience represents an valuable learning as we investigate the effective application of Artificial Intelligence," stated a statement from McDonald's Netherlands.
The commercial was produced for the brand by Dutch agency TBWA\Neboko and US firm The Sweetshop. It depicted various situations that can go wrong during the holidays, using the tagline "the worst time of the year".
The Phenomenon of AI-Generated Ads
Adverts that incorporate generative AI have emerged as a growing phenomenon among large companies, particularly for the holiday season.
- Coca-Cola has similarly launched consecutive AI-created holiday commercials.
- Technical Challenges: Because videos made with current AI video tools are prone to degrade the longer they run, the majority of AI video outputs tend to be only six to 10 seconds in length.
- Industry Concerns: The ad also raised worries about the replacement of human roles in the production industry, with some critics stating it might negatively impact opportunities for camera crews.
Response from the Production Company
After the ad being taken down, a producer's head, Melanie Bridge, spoke in support of the project.
According to her, the development took "seven weeks" and involved producing "countless iterations" which were then shaped during the edit "in the same way we would on any standard production".
"This wasn't an AI trick," she said. "We consider it a proper commercial."
Divisive Audience Sentiment
While the Dutch McDonald's commercial was predominantly panned, the reception for other AI-generated holiday ads has been more mixed.
For instance, a consecutive AI-generated holiday spot from Coca-Cola according to analysis achieved a 61% "favorable response" from online commenters.
However, other businesses have also faced backlash for employing the technique in their campaigns. Luxury brand Valentino, for example, was lambasted for ads that critics called "lazy" and "disturbing".
The episode underscores the ongoing debate within the marketing and production industries about the balance between new tools and human craftsmanship.
