10 Best AI Advertising Campaigns That Got People Talking

Every marketer hits that “everything’s been done before” creative wall at some point, and I’m no different. But lately,  AI has been helping me brainstorm impactful, out-of-the-box ideas. I can then use AI tools like image-to-video, face swap, and text-to-image generation to turn those ideas into stunning, unique visuals. 

Suddenly, I can bring an attention-grabbing concept to life in hours instead of weeks, and the best AI advertising campaigns prove it. From Coca-Cola to Nike, these brands show that when you mix smart tech with bold storytelling, you can turn curiosity into conversation. 

We’ve shortlisted 10 campaigns that got people talking, and a few ideas you’ll want to steal for your own.

1. Coca-Cola: Create Real Magic

Coca-Cola’s Create Real Magic campaign took AI-powered creativity mainstream. Built in collaboration with OpenAI and Bain & Company, it gave digital artists access to an exclusive platform powered by GPT-4 and DALL·E two of the most advanced AI models. 

Creators could remix iconic Coca-Cola imagery, like the contour bottle, Santa Claus, and polar bear, into original artwork, blurring the line between brand nostalgia and cutting-edge tech.

Fans could submit their AI-generated art for a chance to be featured on Coca-Cola billboards in Times Square and Piccadilly Circus. A group of selected artists was even invited to the brand’s headquarters for a creative workshop with its design and AI teams. 

Key takeaways:

• Help your brand crowdsource creativity and turn fans into collaborators with AI.
• Use proprietary brand assets (like Coca-Cola’s logos and characters) to give AI campaigns instant recognition and emotional pull.
• Blend nostalgia with innovation to make even legacy brands feel modern and culturally relevant again.

2. Ben & Jerry’s: Ice Cream for Breakfast?

Ben & Jerry’s wanted to understand what really entices people. Instead of looking at the engagement metrics, they used AI to study culture. With help from Unilever’s AI data centers, they analyzed song lyrics, movie dialogue, Reddit threads, and social posts. 

One theme that stood out to us was: “ice cream for breakfast.” It showed up in more than 50 songs, countless mentions, and even morning menu tests from brands like Dunkin’.

Instead of writing it off as a joke, Ben & Jerry’s used that insight to launch breakfast-inspired flavors like Fruit Loot and Frozen Flakes. The campaign leaned into the fun, rebellious idea of dessert first — proving how AI can turn overlooked trends into real business opportunities.

Key takeaways:

• Use AI to mine cultural data and spot actionable consumer trends.
• Turn a cultural pattern into a new product and campaign angle.

3. Virgin Voyages: Jen AI Campaign

Virgin Voyages teamed up with Jennifer Lopez as their official Chief Celebrations Officer (fun title, right?). Together, they launched Jen A.I., an AI-powered tool that enables travelers to generate a personalized video invitation from JLo herself, convincing friends and family to book a cruise. 

Using augmented reality and voice synthesis, Jen A.I. makes it look like JLo is personally calling you to quit making excuses and celebrate life aboard one of Virgin’s ships.

The campaign tapped into a growing post-pandemic trend: “celebration travel.” People were itching to make up for lost time, and JLo’s digital twin became the perfect push.

Key takeaways: 

• Use image-to-video generators to create interactives 
• Time tech-driven ideas with emotional trends to boost relevance.

4. Nike: Never Done Evolving With Serena Williams

Nike’s “Never Done Evolving” campaign celebrated Serena Williams’ legacy by using AI to do something no one had ever seen before — have Serena play against herself. 

To mark Nike’s 50th anniversary, the brand and agency AKQA used machine learning to create visuals of 1999 and 2017 Serena. They based both versions on real gameplay data, including shot selection, reaction time, and agility. 

The AI then simulated 5,000 full matches between them, generating a hyper-realistic video that visualized how her game had evolved over the years.

The result? Over 1.7 million YouTube views and the highest organic engagement of any Nike video, proof that storytelling powered by data can still feel emotional and human.

Key takeaways:

• Utilize AI to transform data into narrative-driven storytelling that resonates emotionally with your audience.
• Combine nostalgia and innovation to make tech-driven video campaigns feel human and memorable.
• Apply creative AI experiments beyond content — Nike used these insights to inform athlete training and product development.

5. BMW: Generative AI Campaign

BMW asked, “What happens when art history meets AI technology on a car?” For this project, they fed an AI with 50,000 images spanning 900 years of art history plus curated contemporary pieces. 

The AI learned patterns and visual rules, then generated new artwork. That output was projected onto a BMW 8 Series Gran Coupé, turning the vehicle itself into a living canvas.

The blend of historic art with modern AI created a striking visual experience for BMW, reaffirming their long-running “Art Car” tradition as a bridge between innovation and company values. It positioned BMW as a creative tech brand pushing the boundaries of AI-driven digital artistry.

Key takeaways:

• Use AI to merge brand storytelling with cultural relevance instead of treating it as a novelty.
• Blend innovation with existing brand identity to make experiments feel intentional and on-brand. BMW did this by connecting cutting-edge AI art with its long-standing Art Car legacy.

6. Starbucks: Deep Brew AI Platform

Starbucks built Deep Brew to make the brand smarter, faster, and more personal. The AI looks at everything from app activity and loyalty data to weather and store inventory. It then uses this info to suggest drinks, adjust drive-thru menus, schedule staff, and even predict when machines need maintenance. 

Basically, it helps Starbucks predict what customers want before they walk in.

For example, on a chilly morning, Deep Brew might notice that a local store has more oat milk in stock than usual, the app shows many customers ordering lattes, and the forecast predicts rain. The system can then automatically highlight “hot oat milk lattes” in the app, and adjust the drive-thru menu to feature them!

Key takeaways:

• Use internal data to predict what customers want and when by analyzing past purchase behavior, loyalty data, and local trends to personalize offers and messaging in real time.
• Utilize AI to streamline operations and enhance the customer experience by analyzing data across inventory, staffing, and demand patterns, allowing for real-time adjustments of resources.

7. Nutella: Nutella Unica: Millions of Unique Jars

Nutella shook up packaging with Nutella Unica, a campaign that used an algorithm to generate seven million unique jar designs. Working with Ogilvy & Mather Italia, Ferrero (Nutella’s manufacturer) combined dozens of patterns and thousands of color combinations. Each jar had its own distinct look, while keeping the iconic Nutella lettering recognizable. 

Each jar also had a unique code, making it collectible and verifiable. The campaign sold out in Italian supermarkets within a month and was supported by TV and online advertising.

It built on Nutella’s existing personalization initiatives, giving consumers a fresh way to connect with the brand while turning packaging into a form of art.

Key takeaways:

• Leverage algorithm-driven personalization to create one-of-a-kind experiences that resonate with customers.
• Turn packaging into a collectible or shareable asset to drive urgency, engagement, and social sharing.
• Maintain recognizable brand elements so personalization doesn’t compromise brand identity.

8. Burger King: Million Dollar Whopper Contest

Burger King has long promised customers they could “Have It Your Way.” But in 2024, they took that promise to a new level with the Million Dollar Whopper, an AI-powered experience that let fans design their ultimate Whopper using simple text inputs. 

Users could select up to eight toppings, instantly generating high-quality AI images and videos, complete with custom jingles and shareable visuals. The platform was built to handle massive participation in real time while keeping all data secure in a private cloud environment.

Beyond engagement, the campaign gave Burger King a goldmine of consumer insights. The experience was easy, fun, and social, culminating in a year-long campaign that sold out by December 2024.

Key takeaways: 

• Use AI to let customers co-create products by providing interactive, real-time personalization that turns ideas into shareable content.
• Build scalable, privacy-safe AI infrastructure to support high engagement while protecting customer data.

9. Toys“R”Us: The Origin of Toys“R”Us

In 2024, Toys"R"Us became the first brand to produce a full-length brand film using OpenAI’s new text-to-video tool, Sora. The team created a short film telling the origin story of Toys"R"Us founder Charles Lazarus and Geoffrey the Giraffe.

By typing instructions into Sora, they generated realistic scenes with multiple characters, condensing hundreds of potential shots into just a few weeks of production. The film premiered at the Cannes Lions Festival, showcasing the power of AI-driven storytelling to an audience of industry leaders.

Key takeaways:

• Leverage generative AI to speed up production — Sora condensed hundreds of potential shots into a finished film in weeks.
• Use AI to experiment with storytelling formats using text-to-video tools that can bring brand narratives to life in new ways.
• Blend AI with human creativity to add VFX corrections and original music, showing that AI works best when paired with expert human oversight.

10. Sephora: Virtual Artist App

Sephora is using AI to make shopping smarter, more personal, and way more fun. By analyzing behavioral and transactional data, their recommendation systems serve up products tailored to each customer, helping boost engagement while encouraging cross-selling and up-selling.

Their Virtual Artist AR tool lets shoppers try on makeup virtually, making the experience interactive and accurate, while reducing hesitation before purchase. 

Beyond personalization, AI also helps Sephora predict trends, manage inventory, and optimize marketing campaigns, for more efficient operations and improved customer experience.

Key takeaways:

• Make product trials interactive and convenient through AR or virtual testing to reduce purchase friction and increase engagement.
• Use AI insights to optimize operations — from inventory planning to marketing campaigns — to drive efficiency and revenue growth.

Best Practices To Create Effective AI Advertising Campaigns

AI advertising is powerful, but careful strategizing is key to making sure your campaigns actually connect with people. To get the most out of AI tools, I like to use them as both a creative partner and a performance booster that balances creativity, data, and execution:

• Use a multipurpose tool for AI-generated video and image creation: Pick a platform that handles visuals and video in one place so you can produce content faster and maintain a consistent style across formats.
• Test multiple AI-generated ad variations: Don’t settle on the first output. Generate multiple versions of your visuals and messaging to see what resonates best with your audience.
• Personalize content for different audience segments: Use AI to tailor messaging, imagery, and offers based on demographics, behavior, or past engagement, making your ads feel more relevant.
• Analyze performance metrics continuously: Track CTRs, conversions, engagement, and other KPIs in real time to understand what’s working, and feed that data back into AI models for better future outputs.
• Incorporate trending topics and cultural moments: AI can quickly generate timely creative ties to pop culture, seasonal events, or viral trends, keeping your campaigns relevant and shareable.
• Optimize for multiple platforms simultaneously: Leverage AI to adapt content to different formats, sizes, and platform specifications, ensuring your messaging works across social, display, video, and mobile channels.

Turn Your Ideas Into Standout Ads With Magic Hour

AI is transforming the way we create and share content, and the best AI advertising campaigns show just how far creativity can go when paired with smart technology. From Coca-Cola’s interactive art platform to Toys"R" Us’s text-to-video brand film, these examples give me plenty of ideas I can adapt for my own campaigns — and you can too! 

With Magic Hour’s text-to-video platform, you can easily turn concepts into high-quality videos and images in minutes, scale campaigns quickly, and test multiple variations. 

Explore Magic Hour’s AI tools today and start creating your own standout campaigns that engage, delight, and convert.