Coca-Cola's Christmas commercials are as much a part of the holiday season as Santa Claus himself.
For nearly 30 years, their "Holidays Are Coming" ads signaled the start of Christmas.
But Coca-Cola just made one move that left Christmas fans furious.
Remember when Coca-Cola's Christmas trucks meant something? Real vehicles covered in thousands of lights rolling through actual snow. Families gathering around the TV to watch the magic unfold. A moment that felt warm and genuine because it was.
Those days are gone. Coca-Cola decided computer programs could do it better.
And now they're doubling down on that decision despite the backlash tearing through social media like wildfire.
Coca-Cola Replaces Holiday Magic With Computer-Generated Slop
Last year, Coca-Cola shocked viewers when they revealed their iconic Christmas ad was created entirely with artificial intelligence.¹
The backlash was immediate. Fans called it "soulless" and "devoid of any actual creativity."²
Hollywood writer Alex Hirsch summed up the rage: "Coca-Cola is red because it's made from the blood of out-of-work artists."³
Did Coca-Cola listen? Not a chance.
This year they released another AI-generated Christmas commercial. And they're bragging about using even fewer humans to make it.
The 2025 ads feature cartoon animals — polar bears, otters, pandas — watching Coca-Cola trucks roll past. Santa appears briefly at the end, generated from the company's old artwork.
Pratik Thakar, Coca-Cola's global vice president of generative AI, defended the move by claiming "the craftsmanship is ten times better" than last year.⁴
But craftsmanship isn't the issue. The issue is Coca-Cola replacing human creativity with machines to save money.
Jason Zada, founder of Secret Level — one of the AI studios that created the ad — admitted it took only 20 people to produce this year's commercial compared to at least 50 people for a traditional ad of this complexity.⁵
That's not progress. That's putting artists out of work during Christmas.
Why Fans Are Calling For A Coca-Cola Boycott
Social media exploded with anger when the new ads dropped.
"2025 AI slop cheap Coca-Cola commercial, you will never be the 1990s festively warm and comforting Coca-Cola Christmas commercial," wrote one user whose post got over 20,000 views.⁶
"This is disgusting. You're a multiBILLION dollar company. Pay REAL animators," another person fired back.⁷
The comparison to the 1995 original is brutal. That beloved ad featured real trucks, real locations, and a crew of dozens working to capture authentic holiday spirit.
It became so iconic that for millions of people, Christmas doesn't truly begin until they hear those Coca-Cola trucks rolling through the snow.
Now Coca-Cola is telling those same fans that computers can recreate their cherished memories just fine — and do it cheaper.
"Turns out the 'zero' in Coke Zero is the number of human creatives they want to employ," one person wrote, announcing a boycott of Coca-Cola products in 2026.⁸
The company's response? Thakar told reporters "the genie is out of the bottle, and you're not going to put it back in."⁹
That's corporate speak for "we're doing this whether you like it or not."
Coca-Cola spends $5 billion a year on advertising.¹⁰ They have the money to hire real artists and filmmakers. They're choosing not to because AI is more efficient.
The Real Cost Of Coca-Cola's AI Obsession
Coca-Cola isn't alone in embracing AI for advertising. H&M uses digital twins of models. Toys "R" Us faced similar backlash for AI commercials earlier this year.
But Coca-Cola is different. They helped create the modern image of Santa Claus through their 1930s ads by artist Haddon Sundblom. They built Christmas advertising into an art form.
Now they're dismantling that legacy to chase efficiency metrics.
The company claims AI allows them to create content faster and tailor ads for different markets.¹¹
What they won't say is the real motivation: replacing expensive human labor with cheap computer programs.
Zada, the AI studio founder, dismissed critics as "haters on the internet" who are "afraid for their jobs."¹²
He's right that people are afraid. Because they're watching their livelihoods disappear while billion-dollar corporations pat themselves on the back for being "innovative."
Coca-Cola had everything right. Beloved commercials. Loyal customers. A Christmas tradition that spanned generations.
Then they decided to throw it away because AI was more convenient.
Fans aren't buying the excuse that this is about artistic vision. They see it for what it is — corporate greed disguised as progress.
And they're making their voices heard with calls to boycott and switch to Pepsi.
Maybe Coca-Cola executives will figure out that some traditions are worth the cost of real human creativity.
Or maybe next year they'll brag about using even fewer people to make their Christmas ads.
Either way, the magic is gone. And you can't program that back into existence.
¹ Neeraj Arora, NBC News, "Coca-Cola causes controversy with AI-generated ad," November 18, 2024.
² Ibid.
³ Alex Hirsch, X/Twitter, quoted in NBC News, November 18, 2024.
⁴ Pratik Thakar, Newsweek, "Coca-Cola Defends Christmas Advert Amid Backlash," November 4, 2025.
⁵ Jason Zada, The Hollywood Reporter, "Coca-Cola Is Trying Another AI Holiday Ad," November 3, 2025.
⁶ Social media user @hrryrem, X/Twitter, quoted in Newsweek, November 4, 2025.
⁷ Social media user @relientkenny, X/Twitter, quoted in Newsweek, November 4, 2025.
⁸ Social media user @ednewtonrex, X/Twitter, quoted in Newsweek, November 4, 2025.
⁹ Pratik Thakar, Yahoo News, "Coca-Cola faces backlash over attempt to recreate controversial 2024 Christmas commercial," November 4, 2025.
¹⁰ The Hollywood Reporter, "Coca-Cola Is Trying Another AI Holiday Ad," November 3, 2025.
¹¹ Coca-Cola statement, Creative Bloq, "Coca-Cola's soulless AI Christmas ad remake," November 20, 2024.
¹² Jason Zada, Men's Journal, "Coca-Cola's AI Christmas Ad Backlash," November 4, 2025.