When Tech Meets Strategy: Coca-Cola Launches Its 2025 AI-Generated Christmas Ad

After last year’s criticism of AI-generated ads, few expected Coca-Cola to attempt a comeback. Yet they pushed ahead and released a new 2025 version, and fans remain divided. Some argue that AI weakens emotional impact and threatens creative jobs, while others applaud the innovation, visuals and creative ambition.

Let’s be honest, though. Compared to last year’s campaign, this version shows clear improvements in craftsmanship. It’s bold that Coca-Cola listened to the backlash and returned with something more refined.

The Case for the Campaign

1. Efficiency, scale and cost advantages

Coca-Cola claims the ad was produced in roughly one month, versus a year traditionally, thanks to AI tools. This allowed faster adaptation for different markets and multiple creative variations, aligning with their wider digital transformation strategy.

2. Innovation and positioning value

Using AI at scale signals that Coca-Cola is future-focused and unafraid to experiment with new production methods.

3. Incremental performance gains

Despite debates, the AI campaign still delivered brand-lift metrics. Coca-Cola emphasizes a hybrid model, AI plus human oversight, to maintain brand consistency.

The Case against the Campaign

1. Risks to brand authenticity and emotional connection

Many viewers felt the ad lacked Coca-Cola’s classic warmth and nostalgia. Visual inconsistencies, like shifting truck shapes, made the ad feel overly synthetic. For a brand built on emotion, this is a real threat.

2. Mixed public sentiment and backlash

Negative commentary spiked after launch. Some criticised the ad as “cold,” “soulless,” or even “a Pepsi promo,” suggesting it diluted the brand rather than strengthening it.

3. Long-term brand risk versus short-term efficiency

Saving time and money is great, but not if emotional equity suffers. Coca-Cola’s holiday ads are cultural touchstones. If AI undermines that heritage, the long-term brand cost may outweigh the efficiency gains.

What Brands Can Learn from This

1. Start with strategy

Ensure any tech use reinforces, not erodes, your brand’s core identity.

2. Balance human and machine

AI can generate visuals, but humans must guide strategy, storytelling, emotion, sound design, and final polish. Build workflows for oversight and refinement.

3. Protect brand heritage

If your brand relies on nostalgia or emotional resonance, ensure AI enhances rather than replaces the human touch.

4. Be transparent and ethical

Disclose synthetic content where appropriate and communicate how tech supports, not replaces, human creativity.

5. Track sentiment and iterate

Measure cost and time efficiencies, performance metrics, and audience sentiment. Use that data to refine future campaigns.

Conclusion

Did Coca-Cola force it, or was this a smart strategic risk? And if you were part of the creative team, what would you do differently?

Marketing and PR can be complex, especially when audiences are quick to judge. That is why Coral Communications is here to help your business navigate backlash, manage a crisis, and build strategies that work.