DA2 Reading Blog #2

Coca-Cola causes controversy with AI-made ad

The article discusses how big companies have started using AI in marketing and how this has become more common. The article highlights Coca-Cola in particular as one of the world's biggest brands embracing AI completely to make an entire commercial using four different generative AI studios. Coca-Cola claims to have wanted to pay homage to the nostalgic holiday commercial from 1995.

A majority of artists and creatives have given their feedback and backlash to this commercial, saying that it lacks true imagination and creativity and the results can reflect that. The details and animation are not smooth or natural and give a sense of uncanny. Some share that when a company uses AI to entirely create something instead of putting time and effort into the creation process, it takes away from the product convinces customers that the product is not worth consumption.

What I think bothers creatives the most about this commercial is that they are not necessarily against usage of AI as a tool, but the fact that a big company who certainly could afford to hire a team of artists to animate or hire actors to recreate their iconic commercials is taking the cheaper way out. The company argues that they had to have AI studios do the work, but again these "jobs" are not creative and encouraging people to use their practiced craft but rather telling AI to mimic real creativity. I do believe that it is important to understand AI and its benefits as a helpful tool, but definitely should not be used to do entire jobs, especially when money and resources are not an issue.