AI-generated video is not automatically bad. When used carefully, AI can help brands improve workflows, test ideas, fix shots, extend scenes, build background plates, support editing, create internal concepts or reduce the cost of minor production problems.
When used badly, it can make a brand look cheap, lazy and disconnected from its audience.

The issue is not whether AI video is impressive, it can generate breathtaking visuals with the correct prompts. The issue is whether people trust it.

Recent examples show the evident risk.

McDonald’s in Netherlands were forced to pull an AI-generated Christmas advert following overwhelming online criticism. The backlash was so severe that comments were disabled and the video was later removed from public view. (Please see the Forbes article for more information).

Coca-Cola has also faced repeated criticism for their AI-generated Christmas advert. Complaints were centred around visual inconsistencies and a lack of warmth, all the things which are expected of a prestigious brand. (ref: Business Insider)

Clothing brand, Guess received criticism for AI-generated models in Vogue, with concerns around unrealistic beauty standards, creative industry ethics and the loss of human depth. (ref: qazinform.com)

The lesson for B2B brands is simple.

If the video needs to build trust, show expertise, represent people, sell quality or create emotional confidence, do not make the entire advert with AI-generated content.

People will notice, and if it feels false, they will call it out.

Stop Damaging Your Brand With AI Videos

AI-generated video can be useful, but it can also damage a brand when it replaces the very thing advertising is supposed to create which is trust.

The examples above reference B2C brands but this is also true for B2B companies.

A B2B buyer will watch your video content to access whether your company is credible, capable and worth contacting. A candidate is deciding whether your culture feels real. A customer is deciding whether your claims can be trusted. A stakeholder is deciding whether your brand feels professional enough to take seriously.

If the video feels artificial, generic or cheaply made, that judgement happens quickly.

AI video may save money on production but it can also reduce confidence in your brand.

Why Brands Are Using AI Video

The attraction is obvious. AI-generated video can be faster and cheaper than a full production. It can create visual ideas without filming. It can help brands experiment with styles, characters, settings and concepts that would otherwise be expensive or logistically difficult.

For internal concepts, rough storyboards, test assets and low-risk content, that can be useful.

The problem starts when brands treat AI-generated video as a complete replacement for real production, real people and real craft.

A brand might think it has saved money by avoiding a film shoot, but the audience may see something completely different, potentially a company cutting corners.

In business perception matters.

The McDonald’s Problem: AI Without Warmth

McDonald’s Netherlands became one of the clearest examples of AI video backlash.

Christmas advertising relies heavily on warmth, nostalgia, humour and emotional familiarity. AI can generate festive imagery but it cannot create genuine feeling and this was very apparent in their advert. It was a complete mismatch.

The creative idea may have been intended as chaotic or satirical, but the execution became the story. Instead of people talking about the brand message, they talked about the AI and how bad it was.

When the audience notices the method more than the message, the advert has already lost.

Secret Escapes: Treat With Caution

Secret Escapes launched an ad campaign called “Pinch Yourself” featuring a lobster. The entire ad is AI generated which made the advert feel cheap and soulless.

Whilst the campaign was positively framed by advertising trade publications, the public response in comments on articles and Reddit was sharply critical. That contrast is important. The industry may judge the idea and production efficiency one way, while audiences judge authenticity and trust very differently.

For a travel brand selling desire, trust and aspiration, an AI-generated advert looks fake and may leave potential customers questioning the authenticity of the experience being sold.

MrQ: A More Nuanced Example

But it’s not all bad news for AI generated adverts as they have their place.

For a brand like Mr Q which is an online casino, their “Love Q or Hate Q” advertising campaign is completely AI generated and does not appear to have damaged the brand for two reasons:

The AI generation is polished: The visuals in the advert are stunning. It is hard to tell that it is AI-generated because of the fast action and attention to details (such as the liquid and motion physics).
The campaign type: The brand itself doesn’t rely on authenticity or trust building in this advertising campaign. The advert is meant to be fun and unrealistic.

Why Audiences Call Out AI Video

People call out AI video because it often feels wrong before they can explain why.

Faces may be too smooth. Hands may move strangely. Backgrounds may warp. Objects may shift. Expressions may lack timing. Scenes may feel polished but empty. The rhythm may feel like an imitation of advertising rather than advertising with a real idea behind it.

Even when the output is technically impressive, audiences may still reject it if the context feels inappropriate.

A Christmas ad should feel warm.
A recruitment video should feel real.
A testimonial should feel earned.
A premium brand film should feel crafted.
A product launch should feel intentional.

If the AI execution undermines that expectation, the audience will notice.

The Brand Damage Is Not Just Aesthetic

The problem is not simply that AI video can look strange. The deeper issue is what it can suggest about the brand. Here are some of the things a bad AI campaign can suggest:

The company chose cost over quality.
The brand does not understand its audience.
The message is not important enough to film properly.
The people, product or service are not real enough to show.
The company wants the emotional effect of human storytelling without involving humans.

This negative perception can be hugely detrimental for brands.

If your content looks cheap, buyers may assume your service is cheap.
If your advert feels artificial, buyers may question your claims.
If your recruitment video does not involve real people, candidates may question your culture.
If your case study looks generated, prospects may question your proof.

A real video can alleviate all of these concerns.

Where AI Video Can Be Useful

AI-generated content is not bad by default and it can be valuable when used correctly.

AI can help with:

Pre-visualisation.
Storyboards.
Internal concepts.
Background extensions.
Minor scene fixes.
Removing distractions.
Creating transitions.
Supporting animation.
Testing creative routes.
Improving a shot that would otherwise need a reshoot.
Versioning content for different formats.

The key is that AI should support the creative, not replace the substance.

This aligns with how some production specialists describe responsible use. Live action should sit at the heart of any filmmaker’s approach and AI should be used with deliberate restraint to extend scale or possibility while keeping the focus on human performance and emotionally truthful storytelling.

AI should be used to improve the work and not used to avoid doing the work.

Do Not Use AI for Entire Brand-Critical Adverts

The highest-risk use of AI video is making an entire advert from generated footage when the brand requires trust in order for its audience to take action.

AI should not be used to create the entirety of the following content:

Brand films.
Customer testimonials.
Recruitment videos.
Founder films.
Culture content.
Premium service campaigns.
Case studies.
High-value B2B sales assets.
Emotion-led adverts.

In these cases, AI generated video can make the content feel hollow.

The audience may not know the production process, but they can often sense the absence of reality. This is important to understand and respect because when your audience can see it’s soulless AI-generated content, then the conversation shifts from your message to the method used to generate your content.

This is when your brand loses.

The B2C and B2B Rule: If Trust Matters, Film It Properly

B2B and B2C video has a different job from disposable content. It needs to help someone believe the company is credible. That belief usually comes from real evidence: real customers, real employees, real sites, real products, real processes, real expertise and real delivery.

AI can help polish or extend that evidence but it should not be used to fabricate it.

A manufacturing company should show the factory.
A recruitment campaign should show real employees.
A professional services firm should show real experts.
A product launch should show the actual product.
A customer story should show the actual customer.

Substituting real authenticity with AI weakens the point of the video.

The Better Approach

The better approach is hybrid.

Use real production for the parts that create trust and use AI for the parts that improve efficiency, flexibility or visual control. This might mean filming the people, interviews, product, workplace and process properly, then using AI to enhance backgrounds, repair a shot, create visual concepts, support motion design or adapt assets for different channels.

This keeps the human core intact.

It also avoids the biggest AI-video mistake: making something that looks like advertising but feels like nothing.

Stop Damaging Your Brand With AI Videos

The brands facing backlash are not being criticised simply because they used new technology. They are being criticised because the work feels cheap, uncanny, emotionally false, ethically questionable or misaligned with the brand.

This is the lesson we can all benefit from. You can learn from the mistakes made by brands such as McDonald’s and Coca Cola and deliver content which will enhance your business.

Use AI in moderation.
Use it to support production.
Use it to fix, extend, test or improve.

Do not use it to manufacture an entire advert when the purpose of that advert is to build trust.

People will notice and they will call it out.