Lexus is taking its holiday ad game into dreamier terrain—literally—by using AI to power a surreal winter drive that feels like it came straight out of a snow globe. The spot, created by AKQA, blends generative visuals with traditional art direction to tell a story that winds through frosted lakes, alpine trails, and twinkly forests—all from the warmth of a Lexus gliding through a starlit night. The big reveal? The whole journey is actually unfolding inside a tiny snow globe held by a child in the back seat. Cue the cozy holiday feels.
Behind the scenes, AKQA leaned on systems like image-to-video generation and virtual production pipelines, but kept human creatives involved throughout. The team designed the AI-assisted visuals to evolve subtly over time, with whimsical but deliberate seasonal shifts. The goal wasn’t speed for speed’s sake, but to create something visually rich and emotionally resonant within a nimble production model.
Running across EMEA social and digital platforms, the film quietly pushes the boundaries of what AI can add to brand storytelling—without jumping into uncanny valley territory. Lexus says this wintry experiment fits its “Built for Every Kind of Wonder” positioning, and based on internal reactions, sounds like there’s appetite for more AI-meets-imagination ahead. The ad manages to feel both cinematic and unexpectedly small-scale—and gets credit for using new tools without making them the story.
Read more at AdAge.