McDonald's Netherlands Takes Down Artificial Intelligence Holiday Commercial Following Online Criticism.

The global fast-food chain has taken down a holiday commercial produced via AI following receiving considerable online backlash.

The brief film was produced using AI video tools and was first uploaded publicly for McDonald's Netherlands on 6 December.

Audience Response and Decision to Pull

Soon after it aired, commenters denounced the implementation of AI in the film. A number of described it as "creepy" and "awkwardly stitched together".

"This incident is an key learning as we examine the appropriate utilization of Artificial Intelligence," said a statement from the company.

The advert was produced for McDonald's by Dutch agency TBWA\Neboko and US production company The Sweetshop. It depicted various scenarios that can go wrong during the Christmas break, using the tagline "not the most wonderful time of the year".

A Growing Trend of AI-Generated Ads

Commercials that include AI tools have emerged as a growing phenomenon among large companies, notably for the holiday period.

• Another beverage giant has similarly launched back-to-back AI-created Christmas ads.
• Technical Challenges: Since clips created with generative AI are susceptible to become unstable the longer they run, most such clips tend to be only short in length.
• Broader Implications: The video also raised fears about the replacement of human roles in the advertising sector, with some critics noting it could negatively impact work for production staff.

Response from the Production Company

After the video's removal, a producer's head, Melanie Bridge, spoke in support of the project.

She stated, the creation required "over a month and a half" and involved generating "numerous versions" which were then edited afterward "in the same way we would on any high-craft production".

"This was not an AI trick," she said. "It was a film."

Divisive Audience Sentiment

While the Dutch McDonald's ad was mostly criticized, the response for some AI-generated campaigns has been more mixed.

For instance, a recent AI-created holiday spot from another major brand according to analysis achieved a 61% "positive feedback" from the public.

However, several companies have also received backlash for employing the technique in marketing. Luxury fashion house Valentino, for example, was lambasted for advertisements that some described as "low-effort" and "uncanny".

The episode underscores the continuing debate within the advertising and creative sectors about the trade-off between AI efficiency and audience reception.