Liquid Death ran a real, AI-generated Winter Olympics spot that looked so “is this even a real ad from the brand?” that viewers spiraled into Reddit and shaky TikTok replays trying to prove it existed. The ad features an AI figure skater pitching Liquid Death sparkling water as the less “artificial” choice—then promptly goes off the rails when the skater crushes a soda can and morphs into a red-eyed demon warning that AI like her could end humanity. Liquid Death stayed silent on its own channels, which only amplified the “fever dream” vibe and fed the confusion.
That silence wasn’t an accident. A Liquid Death spokesperson said the brand “thought it’d be funny if people saw the ad but couldn’t find it on our socials, [and] that a few might freak out thinking that AI itself may have ran the ad on its own.” The commercial’s selective run on Peacock’s Olympics stream—and the decision not to post it—turned distribution into a mechanic of the joke: the audience’s distrust and uncertainty became part of the campaign’s payload. One critical post on X calling it “AI slop” hit 4.5 million views, showing how quickly “what did I just watch?” can turn into earned reach—even when some viewers miss the irony.
The broader takeaway: brands are increasingly using AI *and* mocking it, betting that public skepticism is a handy trust signal in a world of synthetic everything. Liquid Death is not alone in this strategy – other brands have played with similar anti-AI positioning, including Equinox (contrasting “AI slop” with real gym results) and Almond Breeze (taking a swing at AI-generated creativity). As agency exec Krish Menon put it, “Brands that can clearly articulate what cannot be faked about them gain some level of authority.”
Read more at AdAge.