ATLANTA — Coca-Cola has given its iconic "Holidays Are Coming" ad a modern twist using AI, but it's not come without its share of criticism, with some users online calling the ad "slop."
Ad Week reported that the Atlanta-based company teamed up with Silverside AI to create a fresh version of the 1990s classic ad and others as part of its 2024 holiday marketing campaign.
Speaking with Silverside AI, Ad Week reported the use of AI sped up the creative process significantly, allowing the team to produce a rough draft of the ad in just three days.
While AI brought new challenges, like keeping up with rapidly evolving technology, Silverside AI told Ad Week it also made the process more collaborative and efficient. It even allowed the company to create a customized version of the ad for a broad range of cities and markets in just a matter of days.
Silverside AI co-founder PJ Pereira told Ad Week that AI-produced ads open the door for "great ideas that would have died without the budgets and bring them to life."
“For the last five years, I’ve been hearing creatives complain about doing more for less money, that things have become impossible. It’s not impossible anymore," he said.
Nevertheless, reaction was swift -- and polarizing -- with some pointing out the irony of the ad ending with a tag line "real magic" while the ad was completely generated by artificial intelligence.
Criticism of the ad included the "rushed" feeling of the different shots as well as the unnatural movements and surrealism of the human images.
While most were critical of the ad, some took an embrace-AI-or-get-left-behind attitude.
It's not the first time Coca-Cola has waded into using AI around the holidays. Ad Week reported that the soda company's 2023 campaign included a digital experience where people could create their own holiday cards with generative AI.
11Alive reached out to Coca-Cola for a comment on the ad and the reaction but did not receive one.