Coca-Cola is now under fire again after releasing its Holiday 2025 ad. The advertisement, which may seem harmless at first, has made many people upset. This is the second time Coca-Cola has created an ad entirely using AI. A Los Angeles-based AI studio, Secret Level, is behind the project, and this is their second collaboration with Coca-Cola after the 2024 Holiday ad. The video shows Coca-Cola’s trademark trucks with the “Holidays Are Coming” chant, wide-eyed animals, and finally, a smiling Santa drinking Coke.
As soon as the video went live, Coca-Cola began receiving backlash for using AI once again.
Why Is Coke Receiving All the Backlash?
Coca-Cola, a company valued at around $292.38 billion, has once again made a holiday ad completely with AI. In 2023, Coca-Cola first experimented with AI by partially using it in marketing.
By 2024, the company released its first fully AI-generated holiday ad. That ad faced heavy criticism, as many people felt that using AI replaced human artists and workers.
Now in 2025, Coca-Cola has reduced human involvement even further, reportedly cutting the creative team from around 50 people last year to just 20 this year.
Because of this, Coca-Cola is facing backlash across social media platforms like X (formerly Twitter), YouTube, and Instagram.
Under the new ad on YouTube, one user named ikernasarre commented, “The most profitable commercial in Pepsi’s history.” Another user wrote, “Nothing says ‘holiday spirit’ like laying off your whole graphic arts department in the name of ‘moving forward and pushing the envelope’!”
For now, YouTube, X, and Instagram are filled with discussions, criticism, and debates about Coca-Cola’s latest AI-generated ad.
What Coca-Cola Replied On The Backlash
Coca-Cola has responded to the criticism around its new AI-made ad. Pratik Thakar, global VP and head of generative AI at Coca-Cola, told The Hollywood Reporter that while people criticised the “craftsmanship” of last year’s ad, the quality this time is “10 times better.”
Jason Zada, founder of Secret Level, added: “The haters on the Internet are the loudest… afraid for their jobs.”
Thakar said, “We understand that concern. But we need to keep moving forward… The genie is out of the bottle.”
Even so, many online users say Coca-Cola’s slogan “it’s always the real thing” feels odd for an AI-made ad.
