McDonald's has removed a holiday commercial produced via AI following encountering widespread criticism on social media.
The short ad was produced via AI-generated video and was initially uploaded publicly for the Dutch branch of McDonald's back on 6 December.
Viewer Criticism and Removal
Shortly after its release, commenters lambasted the use of AI in the film. A number of described it as "uncanny" and "awkwardly stitched together".
"This experience is an important learning as we investigate the proper application of generative technology," stated a statement from McDonald's Netherlands.
The commercial was developed for McDonald's by Dutch agency TBWA\Neboko and US production company The Sweetshop. It depicted various scenarios that might go awry during the holidays, with the slogan "the worst time of the year".
A Growing Movement of AI Commercials
Campaigns that include AI-created content have become a increasing phenomenon among large companies, especially for the holiday period.
- Another beverage giant has similarly launched back-to-back AI-generated holiday commercials.
- Technical Challenges: Since clips produced using generative AI are prone to degrade the longer they run, most AI video outputs tend to be only six to 10 seconds in length.
- Industry Concerns: The ad also raised fears about automation in the production industry, with some observers stating it could reduce work for camera crews.
Response from the Production Company
After the video's removal, The Sweetshop's head, Melanie Bridge, spoke in support of the project.
Bridge claimed, the creation took "over a month and a half" and involved creating "thousands of takes" which were then edited afterward "just as we would on any high-craft production".
"This wasn't just an experiment," she said. "We consider it a proper commercial."
Divisive Public Reception
While the Dutch McDonald's ad was largely criticized, the sentiment for other AI-assisted holiday ads has been varied.
For instance, a consecutive AI-created holiday spot from Coca-Cola according to analysis achieved a 61% "favorable response" from the public.
However, several companies have also encountered scrutiny for employing the technique in advertising. Italian brand Valentino, for example, was lambasted for ads that critics called "low-effort" and "uncanny".
The episode highlights the continuing discussion within the marketing and creative industries about the trade-off between AI efficiency and audience reception.
