Coke asks consumers to generate art with new AI platform

Dive Brief:

Coca-Cola unveiled an artificial intelligence (AI) platform that is the first of its kind to combine OpenAI's GPT-4 and DALL-E technologies, per a company blog post. “Create Real Magic” was developed through a partnership between OpenAI and Bain & Company.
Consumers in select markets can visit createrealmagic.com through March 31 to access Coke-branded elements for use in AI-powered art. Artists can submit work for a chance to be featured on digital billboards in New York City and London.
Thirty creators will be selected for the Real Magic Creative Academy at Coke's headquarters in Atlanta, Georgia, where they will co-create content. "Create Real Magic" demonstrates the fast pace at which generative AI marketing initiatives are rolling out.

Dive Insight:

Coca-Cola's debut of "Create Real Magic" offers yet another sign of how quickly generative AI has become the shiniest penny in marketing. This is the first output from a partnership between consultant Bain & Company and AI developer OpenAI that was announced less than a month ago. Coke is the first marketer to take advantage of the alliance and has expressed bullishness around the potential for generative AI marketing.

“Coca-Cola is still in the early days of assessing AI’s potential impact,” said Manolo Arroyo, global chief marketing officer at Coke, in a press statement. “We’re just scratching the surface of what we believe will help create the industry’s most effective and efficient end-to-end marketing model.”

"Create Real Magic" combines OpenAI's GPT-4, the startup’s most advanced large language model to date, and DALL-E, which generates images based on text prompts. By opening the platform to digital creatives around the world, Coke hopes to democratize both its brand iconography and "highest-profile advertising assets," Pratik Thakar, global head of creative strategy and integrated content for the Coca-Cola Trademark, stated in the announcement. Thakar also said the experiment is meant to demonstrate Coke’s commitment to testing and scaling AI technology quickly.

Coke tapped four AI artists in different markets — Emma Sofija (U.S.), Chris Branch (Europe), Paul Parsons (Europe) and Ean Hwa Huag (Asia) — to kickstart the campaign. It will also operate a workshop program for 30 creatives who will get to use the tools to co-create content that could be leveraged for licensed merchandising, digital collectibles and more. Participants will be credited for their work, according to the blog post, perhaps nodding to the way that artists whose work has been used to train AI models have not always been recognized or compensated.

Early bets on generative AI are another way Coke is extending a “Real Magic” brand platform introduced two years ago that centers on shared moments of human connection. Art has been a recent focus of the initiative. The soft drink giant earlier this month launched a global campaign, titled “Masterpiece," that uses classic and contemporary art to highlight diverse creators and position Coke as a source of uplift. The effort includes a high-gloss short film, online gallery, 3D billboards and digital collectibles.