Coca-Cola Christmas advert slammed as AI leaves viewers 'disturbed'

The Coca-Cola Christmas advert has left viewers unsettled due to a dystopian AI twist on its iconic truck sequence. The fizzy drinks behemoth has unveiled its festive ad as part of the flurry of seasonal commercials released in the eight-week run-up to Christmas.

It joins the emotionally charged 2025 John Lewis Christmas advert and other ads from various supermarkets including Sainsbury's and Aldi. However, the company's holiday advert has left audiences far removed from the usual cosy and festive feeling that Christmas stirs within.

Instead, viewers have been left deeply unnerved after Coca Cola confirmed it used Real Magic AI to create the advert. The one-minute commercial showcases an animated holiday-themed scene where a Coca-Cola lorry drives down a snow-laden, light-festooned road.

Along the journey, various animals start to show excitement, such as a pair of polar bears, penguins, birds, squirrels, seals and a sloth. The Christmas trees along the route begin to illuminate until eventually the lorries arrive in a small town as the background jingle 'holidays are coming' reaches a climax.

The only human featured in it is an AI-generated Santa. The advert essentially contains a generic mix of all the aspects people love about heartwarming Christmas adverts, including festive nods and adorable animals.

However, Coca-Cola failed to elicit the reaction they had hoped for as their advert left social media users frustrated, reports the Daily Record.

Following the advert's release, one YouTube user commented: "This is how creativity dies. We're in the darkest timeline, aren't we?"

Another bluntly stated: "You know the kind of ad that you remember? This isn't one of those."

A third observed: "This is creative bankruptcy."

Someone else wrote: "Remember when they paid real animators to make commercials with heart. Now it's soulless AI."

"Ugh! Here we go again with AI slop," another added, as one more complained: "Makes Coke look like a cheap and struggling brand."

Another remark stated: "This AI slop is horrendous. I miss when commercials were actually made by people and had some artistic value to it."

This marks the second occasion Coca-Cola has incorporated AI into its advertising. The company employed the same approach last year and faced comparable criticism. Nevertheless, it seems they have chosen to ignore the negative response.

Pratik Thakar, global vice president and head of generative AI at Coca-Cola, declared in a statement that last year the firm "set a global milestone with the world's first entirely GenAI-created film on broadcast media - a bold leap that broke new ground".

He added: "This year's campaign is another proof point in our journey of emerging technology to rethink how we create and scale content."

Possibly foreseeing the tepid response to the new advert, he stated: 'We're committed to using AI as a human enabler, where it makes sense.

"Creative ambition, direction and thought leadership has and always will be human-led. AI is a superpower when it comes to execution and production, making what was previously impossible possible."

Coca-Cola's latest 'Holidays Are Coming' Christmas advert is available to watch now on the brand's official YouTube channel.