Coca-Cola bets on AI to recreate its classic Christmas commercial

One of the most consolidated and recognized advertising pieces of all time, Holiday Are Coming (known in Brazil as ‘Christmas comes coming’)yes Coca-colagained a new look with the use of generative artificial intelligence, fruit of the brand’s collaboration with three studios specializing in generative AI — Secret Level, Silverside AI e Wild Card —, who produced three versions of the classic using this technology.

AI: increasingly included in Coca-Cola’s plans

Coca-Cola had already been using AI in its campaigns. In 2023, he launched the commercial Masterpiecewidely acclaimed by critics. The piece had the collaboration of OpenAI, responsible for ChatGPT and the DALL-E generative AI model, used to create innovative scenes.

In early 2024, the brand stated that the use of AI will allow us to create a vast library of visual elements quickly and efficiently, starting only from textual descriptions. This approach is directly impacting advertising production, enabling the customization of commercials for different regions of the world.

Now, with the new version of Holiday Are ComingCoca-Cola takes another step in the use of generative AI, reaffirming its tradition in adopting new technologies. A striking example of this tradition was the use of computer graphics to create the iconic polar bears in the 1993 commercial.

The Christmas classic with a technological twist

The new version of the commercial maintains the characteristic look: snowy roads, illuminated Coca-Cola trucks and the Christmas atmosphere that the company helped to imprint in popular culture. The classic elements, such as polar bears and the figure of Santa Claus, are still present.

It is possible to observe the mention of Real Magic IAstrategic positioning of the brand in relation to the use of artificial intelligence. In 2023, Coca-Cola promoted the contest Real Magicinviting artists to submit art generated by brand-related AI tools. The selected works were displayed on iconic billboards such as those in Times Square, in New York, and Piccadilly Circus, in London.

Tools used in the commercial

In the creative process for the new commercial, Coca-Cola used a variety of AI models, including Kling, Leonardo, Luma, Runway, Minimax e Sora (the latter from OpenAI, still unavailable to the general public). Each tool had a specific role. For example, the Kling model was crucial in creating more realistic human movements, while other models contributed at different stages of production.

Coca-Cola has received criticism for its use of AI

Like other companies that are betting on AI, Coca-Cola received some criticism for taking this approach in its classic commercial. In the video posted on its official YouTube channel, some comments adopted a tone of rejection of the material, due to the use of technology. “The real magic is to fire your advertising team at Christmas and use AI-generated material.”said one user.

Some have also pointed out that the AI ​​breaks with the sense of Christmas magic. “I’m going to buy Pepsi Max now”wrote another user. Some people in Brazil were also against the use of technology in commercials.

What did you think of the commercial and the use of AI in its production? Comment below.