Christmas advert devotees have been left up in arms after learning that Coca-Cola’s 2024 festive commercial was made using artificial intelligence – and has killed off Santa Claus in the process.
The 15-second recreation of its famous “Holidays are Coming” ad is the company’s first use of generative AI in a TV Christmas campaign.
As a result, it did not cast a real person to play Father Christmas.
The advert first arrived on screens in 1995 when the iconic Coca-Cola truck drove through a wintery landscape to the soundtrack “Holidays Are Coming”. For many, seeing the brand’s advert has become symbolic of the beginning of the festive season.
In the original ad, three real 40ft trucks were used, weighing two tonnes each and covered with 30,000 light bulbs, according to Coca-Cola.
This year’s advert sees a fleet of Coca-Cola trucks driving through a snowy village. The door to a truck opens and a man is handed a glass bottle of Coke Zero by an unseen figure, but that figure is presumed to be Santa as we get a fleeting glimpse at his white cuff and red sleeve. Woolly-hat revellers line the streets, gleefully sipping on Coke Zero as the “Holidays Are Coming” soundtrack plays. Santa does not feature otherwise.
Viewers online have been sharing their disapproval of the changes to this year’s advert, with one writing on X/Twitter: “Dear Coca-Cola, please could you send the Santa Train advert to the UK as they appear to have eliminated Santa from the adverts here! It’s not Christmas without the Coca-Cola train!!! Thank you!”
One person said the AI element of the advert made them feel “sick”, as another added: “The world is so over if the Christmas Coca-Cola advert is made with AI.”
Others, who hadn’t yet learnt the advert was made using generative AI, asked online: “Why does the Coca-Cola advert look like AI?”
“Sad to see this was made with AI generated program,” said another.
Javier Meza, the EU chief marketing officer at Coca-Cola, said the brand was adapting to “today’s times” by incorporating AI.
“We didn’t start by saying: ‘OK, we need to do this with AI,’” he told Marketing Week, adding: “The brief was, we want to bring Holidays Are Coming into the present and then we explored AI as a solution to that.”
He added that AI was an “efficient” way of creating the advert while saving time and money.
A Coca-Cola spokesman said: “Coca-Cola’s exciting venture into AI-generated storytelling demonstrates Coca-Cola’s commitment to embracing innovation, leveraging our collaborations with top creative and technology partners, while staying true to its core values: spreading happiness and creating real magic!”
