Toys 'R' Us Used AI To Create an Ad, Many Aren't Happy

Toys “R” Us, the iconic toy retailer, has made history by becoming the first brand to create an advertisement using OpenAI’s cutting-edge text-to-video tool, Sora.

The 66-second promo video titled “The Origin of Toys ‘R’ Us”, which premiered at the 2024 Cannes Lions Festival in France, tells the story of Toys “R” Us founder Charles Lazarus and his vision for revolutionizing toy stores with the help of the brand’s mascot, Geoffrey the Giraffe.

We are thrilled to partner with Native Foreign to push the boundaries of Sora, a groundbreaking new technology from OpenAI that’s gaining global attention. Sora can create up to one-minute-long videos featuring realistic scenes and multiple characters, all generated from text instruction. Imagine the excitement of creating a young Charles Lazarus, the founder of Toys“R”Us, and envisioning his dreams for our iconic brand and beloved mascot Geoffrey the Giraffe in the early 1930s.

The 66-Second Video Ad

The ad features the company’s mascot, Geoffrey the Giraffe which is made “almost entirely” generated by Sora with text prompts.

You can watch the full video here:

Looking at the quality of the video and comparing it to the current state of AI video generator tools, I am convinced that it still took some significant human effort. Or at least took the team a couple hundred tries to come up with this level of quality.

Interestingly, the press release suggests that this ad will not be aired on TV or other traditional media platforms. Instead, it will be available exclusively on the Toys “R” Us website and its social media channels.

What is Sora?

Sora is OpenAI’s text-to-video AI tool that can create up to one-minute-long videos featuring realistic scenes and multiple characters. Users provide text descriptions, and the AI generates photorealistic video content based on those prompts.

Sora is a diffusion model, an advanced AI technique with a unique way of “learning.” Diffusion models begin with clear data, like images or videos. They then gradually add noise until the original content is obscured.

The core of their power lies in reversing this process — learning to remove noise step-by-step until the original data is restored. This creates an AI system that can generate realistic results.

Despite its impressive capabilities, Sora is not commercially or publicly accessible due to safety concerns. The tool remains in a restricted phase, primarily used by select partners and organizations to explore its potential and address any ethical or safety issues that may arise from its widespread use.

AI Ads: The Good

Despite the controversy, the quality of the Toys ‘R’ Us ad is impressive. The video shows some remarkable coherence, seamless frame interpolation, and overall visual quality that is comparable to work done by professional animators and VFX artists.

The team likely went through hundreds of prompts to achieve the desired video quality, but the end result is really good.

AI Ads: The Bad

Sure, these AI tools are becoming really good and the results we get out of them are impressive. However, the use of AI in creating promotional videos has raised concerns among visual effects artists and animators who fear job losses.

Critics argue that the art and skill involved in creating these videos may be devalued if anyone can produce similar content by simply typing ideas into an AI tool.

Actor Luke Barnett expressed his disappointment, tweeting: “Shame on Toys’R’Us for contributing to this madness and also for making such a shitty-looking commercial.”

Another actor, Elias Toufexis, wrote: “I’m glad Toys R Us went out of business. They should have stayed out.”

Even I worry about the potential flood of AI-generated videos across the internet and other media outlets.

And hey, do you remember the attempt by Marvel Studios to use AI in the intro of the TV series, Secret Invasion?

It was terrible. With a big budget, they could’ve hired talented individuals instead.

Use of AI on TV Isn’t New

In February 2024, a Japanese company, En, Ltd., made headlines by including an artificial intelligence-created model in a TV commercial for its Oi Ocha Katekin Ryokucha green tea drink.

First AI-Generated Model Appears In A Japanese TV Ad
We’ll be seeing more and more AI generated media on our TV screens soon.generativeai.pub

After watching it a few times, it’s clear that the model isn’t a real person.

Another example is A24’s Instagram ads for the film “Civil War” which featured AI-generated images of American landmarks destroyed by a fictional conflict, which were not present in the actual movie.

This led to criticism about the deceptive nature of the ads and their potential to mislead viewers.

Final Thoughts

As an artist myself, I have mixed feelings about the Toys ‘R’ Us AI-generated ad. On one hand, the quality is undeniably impressive, showcasing the rapid advancements in AI technology. On the other hand, I can’t help but feel a twinge of concern for my fellow creatives in the industry.

There’s something special about seeing the output of real human hard work, where artists pour their hearts into their craft and showcase skills honed over years of experience.

However, we can’t ignore the reality that AI is here, and it’s here to stay. Rather than resist, perhaps the best approach is to find ways to incorporate these tools into our workflows. AI could potentially handle tedious tasks, freeing up more time for human artists to focus on the creative aspects that truly require our unique perspectives and emotional intelligence.

That said, I hope companies like Toys ‘R’ Us will find a balance between leveraging new technologies and valuing human creativity.

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