McDonald's Netherlands Takes Down Artificial Intelligence Festive Advertisement In the Wake of Public Outcry.

The global fast-food chain has taken down a Christmas advert made via Artificial Intelligence following facing widespread criticism on social media.

The 45-second ad was developed via AI-generated video and was originally released on the YouTube channel for the Dutch branch of McDonald's on 6 December.

Social Media Response and Removal

Following its publication, viewers on social media lambasted the employment of AI in the commercial. Many labeled it "uncanny" and "jarringly assembled".

"This experience is an valuable lesson as we investigate the appropriate utilization of generative technology," said a representative from McDonald's Netherlands.

The commercial was produced for the brand by Dutch company TBWA\Neboko and American firm The Sweetshop. It showed a series of things that can go wrong over the Christmas break, using the theme "the most terrible time of the year".

The Phenomenon of AI in Advertising

Adverts that include generative AI have emerged as a growing trend among large brands, particularly for the holiday campaign season.

• Coca-Cola has also released back-to-back AI-created Christmas commercials.
• Technical Challenges: As videos produced using generative AI are prone to degrade the more extended they are, most AI video outputs tend to be about short in length.
• Industry Concerns: The ad also sparked worries about the replacement of human roles in the advertising sector, with some commenters pointing out it might affect work for production staff.

Defense from the Creators

Following the ad being taken down, The Sweetshop's head, Melanie Bridge, defended the advert.

Bridge claimed, the development took "over a month and a half" and involved generating "thousands of takes" which were then edited during the edit "in the same way we would on any standard production".

"This was not an AI gimmick," Bridge asserted. "It was a finished piece."

Mixed Public Reception

While the Dutch McDonald's ad was mostly criticized, the sentiment for some AI-assisted holiday ads has been divisive.

For instance, a consecutive AI-generated holiday spot from Coca-Cola according to analysis received a significant "positive sentiment rating" from the public.

However, several companies have likewise received scrutiny for employing AI in advertising. Luxury brand Valentino, for example, was criticized for advertisements that critics called "cheap" and "uncanny".

The situation underscores the evolving discussion within the advertising and production sectors about the balance between AI efficiency and creative integrity.