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Scan for outdated or missing drivers - takes under a minuteDriver Scan →Repair Windows errors before they cause bigger problemsFix Now →Fix the driver behind crashes, sound loss and screen glitchesFind Drivers →Yes—Coca-Cola’s 2024 “Holidays Are Coming” remake was made with generative AI, and its uneasy reception was about more than odd-looking faces. The ad reproduced a familiar piece of holiday nostalgia with technology that some viewers felt made the tradition seem less human.
What was Coca-Cola’s AI holiday commercial?
It was a 2024 remake of Coca-Cola’s iconic 1995 “Holidays Are Coming” commercial. The first public cut ran for 15 seconds and brought back the familiar truck convoy, snowy scenery and holiday song. Reporting also described a longer cut and three related holiday ads, including a Coke Zero version. Reporting on the campaign
The point was recognition: the trucks and music were meant to summon a campaign many viewers already associated with the season. This was not simply a new ad that happened to use AI; it deliberately revisited a well-known piece of Coca-Cola’s advertising history.
How did the remake differ from the 1995 original?
| Aspect | 1995 original | 2024 remake |
|---|---|---|
| Production | Traditional production with a crew and performers. | Reported as Coca-Cola’s first fully AI-generated ad, using AI-generated recreations. |
| Visual identity | The truck convoy, snow and song established the recognizable holiday imagery. | Those visual and musical cues returned in a deliberate nostalgia remake. |
| People and motion | Presented through conventional filmed performance. | Critics pointed to synthetic-looking people, uncanny faces and motion, and very short shots. |
| Stated rationale | Not stated in the cited reporting. | Coca-Cola said it wanted to bring “Holidays Are Coming” into the present and explored AI as a solution. |
| Audience response | Associated with holiday tradition and nostalgia. | Prompted criticism focused on image quality and the authenticity of using AI for a beloved campaign. |
The table describes the contrast reported around the two campaigns; it does not establish production budgets, sales effects or a measured audience verdict.
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Why did Coca-Cola use AI?
Coca-Cola’s stated explanation was that AI emerged as a way to update the campaign, rather than being the brief from the outset. Javier Meza, the company’s European chief marketing officer, said: “We didn’t start by saying: ‘OK, we need to do this with AI.’ The brief was, we want to bring Holidays Are Coming into the present and then we explored AI as a solution to that.” Meza’s explanation
Efficiency was part of the broader debate around the campaign: generative AI may offer a faster or potentially cheaper route to production. But the available reporting does not establish what Coca-Cola spent, how long production took, or whether the remake reduced costs. Treating those outcomes as proven would go beyond what is known.
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Why did the ad look creepy to some viewers?
Critics described synthetic-looking people, uncanny faces and motion, and rapid shots. Those visual traits mattered because the ad asked viewers to recognize a familiar, warm holiday tradition. When a face or movement seemed artificial, it could disrupt the feeling the trucks and song were meant to evoke.
The objection was also cultural, not just technical. For some viewers, the concern was that a campaign tied to human performance and seasonal memory had been reproduced as corporate AI output. In that reading, the unease came from the gap between the ad’s sentimental imagery and the production method critics believed it represented. Criticism of the ad Discussion of its reception
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What does the backlash say about AI in advertising?
The campaign became a compact example of a wider tradeoff: businesses may see generative AI as a route to speed or efficiency, while audiences may see the same choice as a loss of craft, labor or emotional authenticity. Those are not interchangeable questions. An ad can be recognizable and technically ambitious while still leaving viewers cold about how it was made.
One report relayed a qualitative comparison suggesting the ad scored highly for branded emotional reaction, but it did not provide a numerical score or the full methodology. That claim therefore cannot settle whether audiences broadly liked the ad, nor does it establish a sales lift or other commercial result. Coverage of the response
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The 2024 remake’s tension is plain: Coca-Cola brought back the signs of a cherished tradition, but some viewers did not feel the same human warmth in the result. Whether that makes it a failed ad depends on what a viewer values—recognition, production efficiency, visual realism or the sense of human craft behind the image.
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