Coca-Cola’s annual Christmas advertisements are pretty much a cultural institution. Glowing lights on those imposing red delivery trucks have symbolized holiday cheer since the mid-1990s.
However, this year, Coca-Cola broke with tradition with quite a step into the unconventional: an AI-generated reboot of its classic “Holidays Are Coming” ad campaign. For some, it’s a technological leap forward; for many more, it’s a step too far, replacing the magic of human artistry with the uncanny precision of algorithms.
An alliance of AI studios created the ads, including Silverside AI and Secret Level, as well as state-of-the-art generative AI tools such as Stable Diffusion, Runway and DALL-E. While Coca-Cola maintains that its effort was to reimagine its iconic campaign for the modern viewer, its execution has been met with significant outrage online. The ads have been called “soulless garbage,” and an attack by the company on creative agencies to save money. On X, a user lamented, “Shame on Coca-Cola. The message is received: ‘We don’t care enough about our product or our audience to make good ads.'”
At the heart of the debate is the uncanny, robot-like manner in which the AI visuals come across. The ads use brief shots of Coca-Cola trucks winding through snowy festive landscapes, punctuated by cursory glimpses of customers holding bottles of Coke. Theoretically, this was meant to pay homage to the firm’s much-loved 1995 campaign. In practice, many found the ad creepy. Vigilant viewers complained about the twisted proportions, immobile truck wheels and no focus on human faces—likelya tactic to avoid what they call the “uncanny valley.” Not even Santa went unchecked; he was relegated to a faceless hand holding a Coke bottle instead of the warm and friendly fellow of past adverts.
The creators of the ad campaign defended their work by pointing out that the AI “allowed them to move fast and be flexible in their creative choices.” PJ Pereira of Silverside AI said that the application of generative AI lets them deliver 110 tailor-made versions of this ad to various markets around the globe, which is something impossible with conventional production timing. Critics say this efficiency comes at the cost of authenticity and craftsmanship. As creator Alex Hirsch of the television show Gravity Falls joked, Coca-Cola’s iconic red color represents “the blood of out-of-work artists.”
However, the controversy goes well beyond aesthetics, adding fuel to the fire. AI proved quite limited in production, and it reportedly took hundreds of attempts to achieve a simple shot of a squirrel. Combined with AI’s notorious tendency to “hallucinate, ” that is, to create nonsensical or distorted elements, this inefficiency raises severe doubts over whether the technology is ready to replace traditional methods. For every promised efficiency, others counter that the volume of discarded attempts negates that utterly. Others view it more ominously–as the first salvo in automation’s relentless march on the creative workforce.
Despite that, Coca-Cola is undaunted by the role of AI in advertising. The remade “Holidays Are Coming” ads were accompanied by other AI-pushed holiday undertakings, including interactive snow globe animations and a chatbot Santa. These experiments suggest a more extensive approach to positioning AI as an engagement and personalization tool. Proponents, such as Pereira claim that the technology augments human creativity by streamlining production and enabling real-time iterations, freeing creatives to innovate more on the conceptual side rather than logistical constraints.
The broader implications of these experiments must be considered. Generative AI, while dazzling in its capabilities, often relies on remixing existing material rather than creating something wholly original. This has led many to view it as a threat to creative integrity.
As Megan Cruz from The Broad Perspective Pod said succinctly: “It’s not some great equalizer. It’s a way for already ridiculously rich [executives] to add a few more [million] to their annual bonus by axing creative teams wholesale [and] having a machine spit out the most lame rubbish imaginable instead.”
Ultimately, Coca-Cola’s foray into AI reflects a more profound tension in the heart of modern-day advertising. On one hand, brands must chase innovation to stay relevant in a fast-moving digital landscape. On the other hand, they risk alienating audiences by discarding the elements–touch, artistry and emotion–that make their campaigns resonate. For Coca-Cola, the backlash may serve as a wake-up call. While AI has managed to imitate the mechanics of creativity, its soul remains elusive.
