Having revolutionized the advertising industry in its heyday, Coca-Cola now finds itself in a pickle over its latest AI-generated Christmas ad for the second year running. The beverage giant recently released its yearly holiday-themed advertisement and once again chose to rely on artificial intelligence, leading to intense backlash on the internet.
Coca-Cola criticized for AI-generated Christmas ad
On November 3, Coca-Cola shared a 1-minute ad titled ‘Holidays Are Coming.’
In one day of the upload, the promotional video on YouTube has drawn much criticism for only using artificial intelligence to compose the snippet. The clip starts with an animated Santa Claus opening a bottle of Coca-Cola in a snowy background before placing a company truck on the road.
As the cargo-bearing vehicle traverses through the track, more LED-laden trucks begin to join the convoy. The Coca-Cola ad also features a horde of AI-generated animals, seen eagerly waiting for the advent of the said trucks.
Many have compared the video to Coca-Cola’s 2024 holiday season ad, also put together solely using AI. Notably, the company collaborated with the same AI studio as last year, named Secret Level, to produce the controversial Christmas promo for 2025, per The Hollywood Reporter.
Meanwhile, Pratik Thakar, Coca-Cola’s global VP and Head of Generative AI, has responded to the backlash. He stated that this year’s advertisement features a better creative edge than last year’s attempt.
“Last year, people criticized the craftsmanship,” Thakar noted, before adding, “But this year the craftsmanship is ten times better. There will be people who criticize — we cannot keep everyone 100 percent happy. But if the majority of consumers see it in a positive way, it’s worth going forward.”
However, Jason Zada, Secret Level’s founder and chief creative officer, believes that the backlash is limited to a specific faction on the internet. “The haters on the Internet are the loudest. A lot of the people complaining last year were from the creative industry who were just afraid — afraid for their jobs, afraid for what it did. But I think the spot tested really well, and average people really enjoyed it,” he remarked.
Additionally, Thakar stated, “Yes, some parts of the industry were not pleased we were using a 100 percent Generative AI film, but that’s part and parcel of doing something pioneering. We understand that concern. But we need to keep moving forward and pushing the envelope.”
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