Best Ads of the Week: Yeti’s long-lasting bags and Audi’s AI supermodel stunt

This week, Audi used biometric sensors and AI on a supermodel, McDonald’s released the biggest marketing campaign in its history and T-Pain and Jimmy O Yang competed for a coveted spokesperson title.

‘Feel the Art of Audi’ by Bensimon Byrne

‘Feel the Art of Audi’ is a campaign that launched last month. It stars supermodel Coca Rocha driving a Q8 for the first time and wearing “an array of biometric sensors,” as described by the brand. The data from her emotional reaction – ”which ranged from awe to exhilaration, and serenity” – is then fed to an AI model, which translated it into vibrant visual imagery “to capture the lifelong Audi driver’s genuine responses o the new Q8’s design, performance and refinements.”

The effort was spearheaded by Toronto-based agency Bensimon Byrne and arrives at a time when several brands and agencies are seeking to leverage AI – and generative AI in particular – in novel and engaging ways.

‘Ready When You Aren’t’ by VCCP

New Ritz ad ‘Ready When You Aren’t’ plays into the all-too-familiar feeling of being caught off guard when guests arrive earlier than planned. The ad sees a family rush franticly to get the house tidy in the nick of time before letting the arrivals in. The film’s stunts were worked on with content creator Daniel LaBelle, who is renowned for his physical comedy on TikTok and YouTube.

The spot comes from creative agency VCCP and was directed by The Bobbsey Twins.

‘Marakov Returns’ by 72andSunny

A terrifying new trailer for Modern Warfare III blends live-action with animation and alerts gamers that Vladimir Makarov, the franchise’s main antagonist, will resurface in the upcoming game from Activision Blizzard.

‘Makarov Returns’ is set to a remixed version of Just So You Remember by Pusha T and Six Day War by Colonel Bagshot. It includes voiceover and VFX to bring the characters to life.

Creative agency 72andSunny led the campaign while Salomon Ligthelm directed the trailer.

‘As Featured In’ by Wieden+Kennedy

McDonald’s has dropped its biggest marketing push to date, launching in 100 countries with its ‘As Featured In Meal.’

In the 60-second spot, fans of the fast food chain get a glimpse of the many times the Golden Arches have been mentioned in popular TV shows and movies. Some of the featured titles include Friends, Loki, The Office, Coming to America, Fast and Furious and Space Jam.

Creative agency Wieden+Kennedy NYC led the campaign.

‘Next HelloFresh Spokesperson’ by D’Marie Productions

The latest campaign from meal kit company HelloFresh sees unlikely pair T-Pain and Jimmy O Yang perform attention-grabbing stunts to earn the coveted title of ’Next HelloFresh Spokesperson.’ In the hero spot, Yang takes the plunge and gets the ultimate show of commitment – a HelloFresh logo tattoo inked on his neck. Not to be outdone, T-Pain rolls out a HelloFresh green car on to the scene.

The work was ideated in-house and developed in partnership with D’Marie Productions.

‘Made for Real Growth’ by AnalogFolk

By spotlighting children in their most candid moments, Flinstone Vitamins’ latest campaign, ‘Made for Real Growth,’ aims to normalize the beautiful messiness of parenthood. Its first segment comprises an array of social media films dubbed ‘The “Perfect“ Script,’ in which real kids read – and stumble over – a so-called ’perfect’ script. Throughout the videos, children take on all the big questions like “Is mommy older than a dinosaur?“ and “Where does zinc come from?“ culminating in a montage that is equal parts hilarious and charming.

Bayer partnered with global independent creative agency AnalogFolk and Untold Fable on the campaign. The film was shot in New York and directed by Matthew Pollack, a local award-winning filmmaker known for previously directing over 500 shorts for CollegeHumor.

Rimmel-Snapchat AR activation by Zenith UK

A new campaign heralding Rimmel’s new Thrill Seeker Pitch Black mascara relies solely on digital and out-of-home. It entails a virtual takeover of London’s Tower Bridge, which allows Snapchat users to point their phone cameras at the landmark and watch it ‘melt’ into black liquid.

Zenith UK handled the media planning and buying for this campaign, which will run through August.

‘Can We? We Can’ by BBH Dublin

This new ‘Can We? We Can’ campaign aims to drive usage of Tesco’s click-and-collect service. In the spot, viewers see a young boy asking his father if they can do something fun the next day while his father uses the Tesco Click+Collect option for his weekly shop. With plenty of time freed up, the pair go on a random and fun-filled day of adventure; they eat ice-creams, play football, go to the movies, get their hair cut and even go on a trip to space. It’s the work of the creative agency BBH Dublin.

The New York Times’s subway takeover

The New York Times has transformed the shuttle subway train that runs between Times Square and Grand Central Station in New York City. Users of the service will be immersed in environments representing the full suite of Times products – from Wirecutter to Wordl – in the 90 seconds that it takes to travel between the two stations.

In one activation promoting The Athletic, people will get to feel what it’s like to go inside the game like a journalist by exploring the locker room of The New York Giants. Another activation takes the style of a kitchen as it promotes its recipes section. The work is an extension of The Times’s ‘All In’ campaign and will run until September 10.

‘Built for Generations’ by Yeti

A smiley face plastic bag might be the classic ‘to-go bag,’ but a Yeti tote is the ‘go-to bag’ according to its latest campaign highlighting the longevity of its products. The benefit to the planet of less single-use and disposable items is a bonus.

Another line reads ‘generations to break down’ below a picture of a polystyrene drinks cooler, while next to a Yeti cooler are the words ‘generations to break in.’ The campaign builds on Yeti’s ‘Built for Generations’ platform, which first launched in 2020.

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