SAN FRANCISCO: Apple on Thursday apologized after a commercial for its latest-edition iPad caused an uproar in public that showed an industrial press crushing objects linked to human creativity.
Social media users immediately denounced the ad, which was posted on X by Apple CEO Tim Cook, terming it tone-deaf at a time when the creative community is worried about its future with the emergence of AI.
Apple’s vice president of marketing Tor Myhren told the ad company that creativity is in the DNA of Apple, and it’s incredibly important for the company to design products that empower creatives worldwide.
He said the goal of Apple is to always celebrate ideas that its users bring to life through the iPad. “We missed the mark with this video, and we’re sorry.”
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The company also said it won’t air the advertisement on television as planned.
The one-minute ad titled “Crush” sees the creative artifacts such as a guitar, piano and paint cans explode under the pressure of Apple’s press.
At the end of the press pulls back and shows Apple’s latest tablet, the iPad Pro, touted as ultra-thin.
Actor Hugh Grant in a post on X expressed anger at the destruction of the human experience. He also ironically paid courtesy to Silicon Valley for making such an ad.
Hollywood director Reed Morano urged Apple CEO, Tim Cook to “read the room,” calling the ad “psychotic.”
Many critics said the ad betrayed Apple’s iconic 1984 ad that launched the first Mac computer.
