The global fast-food chain has removed a Christmas commercial made using AI following receiving widespread public disapproval.
The brief ad was created via AI-generated video and was initially uploaded online for the Dutch branch of McDonald's back on 6 December.
Audience Response and Decision to Pull
Soon after it aired, audiences online lambasted the employment of AI in the commercial. Several called it "disturbing" and "poorly edited".
"This incident serves as an key lesson as we explore the effective use of generative technology," said a spokesperson from McDonald's Netherlands.
The commercial was developed for McDonald's by Netherlands-based company TBWA\Neboko and American firm The Sweetshop. It portrayed various situations that often go badly over the Christmas break, using the theme "the most terrible time of the year".
A Growing Phenomenon of AI-Generated Ads
Campaigns that include generative AI have emerged as a rising trend among prominent corporations, notably for the holiday season.
- Coca-Cola has recently launched back-to-back AI-created holiday commercials.
- Technical Challenges: As clips produced with generative AI are prone to distort the longer they run, the majority of such clips tend to be about a few seconds in length.
- Industry Concerns: The ad also raised concerns about automation in the production industry, with some commenters stating it might affect work for actors.
Response from the Production Company
After the video's removal, The Sweetshop's CEO, Melanie Bridge, defended the project.
Bridge claimed, the creation required "over a month and a half" and involved creating "thousands of takes" which were then crafted in post-production "in the same way we would on any traditional production".
"This wasn't just an AI trick," she said. "The result was a film."
Mixed Audience Sentiment
While the Dutch McDonald's ad was predominantly panned, the response for some AI-generated holiday ads has been divisive.
For instance, a recent AI-created holiday spot from another major brand according to analysis received a significant "positive feedback" from online commenters.
However, other businesses have also received criticism for using AI in marketing. Luxury fashion house Valentino, for example, was criticized for ads that critics called "cheap" and "uncanny".
The episode highlights the ongoing debate within the advertising and production sectors about the trade-off between AI efficiency and audience reception.
