McDonald's is once again at the centre of a debate, this time not for its menu, but for its festive advertising. The fast-food giant has come under fire after releasing an AI-generated Christmas commercial on December 6, prompting divided reactions online and raising broader concerns about the growing role of artificial intelligence in creative industries.
AI Innovation Or AI Overreach?
The advertisement was produced by US-based agency TBWA in collaboration with an international AI specialist team and production house The Sweetshop. Despite the campaign's heavy use of artificial intelligence, The Sweetshop CEO Melanie Bridge insisted the project remained firmly human-led.
"'AI didn't make' McDonald's Christmas Ad. We Did," she said, stressing that the script was engineered specifically for AI-not as a gimmick, but because a live-action version would have required a substantial budget.
"From day one, we knew this couldn't be an 'AI experiment.' It had to feel like a film shaped by directors.... The fact that the medium happened to be AI was almost incidental. Craft was the point," she added.
TBWA\NEBOKO echoed a similar sentiment, describing the project as a deliberate attempt to "challenge the conventions of holiday advertising." Chief creative officer Darre van Dijk said the team approached the ad with a bold concept: rewriting a classic Christmas song into "the most terrible time of the year" and blending high production value with the "craziness" AI enables.
Why McDonald's Chose AI For Christmas
According to the campaign team, the creative direction was driven by new research from MediaTest, which found that two-thirds of Dutch consumers want more personal time during December. McDonald's Netherlands aimed to tap into that sentiment, positioning the campaign within its wider message that "December could use a little McDonald's."
Marketing manager Karin van Prooijen explained the thinking behind the approach, "December is a busy month for everyone. We want to give people something to look forward to each day, not only on the traditional peak dates, and this campaign brings that idea to life in a new way."
Backlash Erupts As Viewers Criticise 'AI Slop'
While McDonald's blocked comments on YouTube, the ad quickly circulated on other platforms, where backlash erupted. Many social media users criticised the reliance on AI, arguing that the finished product lacked human touch, artistic authenticity, and emotional depth.
One X user wrote, "'Our fingers hurt from typing prompts'. AI bros are some of the most unserious people on the planet."
Another person claiming to be one of the project's prompt writers joked about the process, posting, "Prompts that my team used include, make it funny, make it epic AND funny, funnier!!! Please be nice to my team as many of them will be laid off/replaced by AI."
Some were more blunt, with comments such as, "No one wants to see something that can be generated on their own PC" and "This took maybe 30 minutes."
Others criticised the ad's messaging. One emotional comment read, "McDonald's wants to tell me Christmas is terrible and I should go sit in their nasty restaurant and eat their crappy food? Screw McDonald's."
Another viewer mocked the visuals themselves, "That is more real than the stuff they try to pass off as food."
The backlash highlights a growing cultural divide, those fascinated by AI's creative potential and those who view its rapid adoption as a threat to artistic integrity and human jobs.
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