The global fast-food chain has removed a holiday advert made with Artificial Intelligence after encountering significant criticism on social media.
The 45-second ad was created with the help of generative AI clips and was first uploaded online for McDonald's Netherlands back on 6 December.
Social Media Response and Removal
Shortly after its release, audiences online lambasted the use of AI in the advert. A number of called it "creepy" and "poorly edited".
"This moment represents an valuable learning as we examine the effective utilization of AI," commented a statement from the company.
The commercial was developed for McDonald's by Dutch agency TBWA\Neboko and American production company The Sweetshop. It depicted various situations that can go wrong over the holidays, using the theme "not the most wonderful time of the year".
The Phenomenon of AI Commercials
Adverts that include AI-created content have emerged as a rising trend among prominent corporations, especially for the holiday campaign season.
- Coca-Cola has recently launched consecutive AI-created holiday commercials.
- Technical Challenges: As clips created with generative AI are prone to degrade the longer they run, the majority of AI video outputs tend to be only short in length.
- Industry Concerns: The ad also provoked concerns about job displacement in the production sector, with some critics stating it might affect work for actors.
Response from the Production Company
After the video's removal, a producer's CEO, Melanie Bridge, spoke in support of the project.
Bridge claimed, the creation required "seven weeks" and involved generating "thousands of takes" which were then crafted afterward "in the same way we would on any standard production".
"This wasn't an AI trick," she commented. "The result was a proper commercial."
Mixed Public Reception
While the McDonald's ad was largely criticized, the reception for other AI-generated holiday ads has been more mixed.
For instance, a recent AI-generated Christmas spot from another major brand according to analysis achieved a 61% "positive sentiment rating" from viewers.
However, various brands have likewise received scrutiny for employing AI in advertising. Luxury brand Valentino, for example, was lambasted for ads that some called "low-effort" and "uncanny".
The situation highlights the evolving discussion within the marketing and creative industries about the balance between technological innovation and creative integrity.
