Coca‑Cola: Fusing Holiday Heritage With AI to Create Magic.
Heritage icons met AI innovation for a magical festive season.
Coca‑Cola, long synonymous with the holidays, celebrated the season by blending its iconic heritage with cutting-edge AI and digital technology.
From the red trucks to Sundblom’s classic 1931 Santa, the brand brought festive symbols to screens and streets worldwide.
Fans Chatted With AI Santa
In a first-of-its-kind digital experience, consumers had real-time conversations with Santa. By scanning QR codes on-pack or visiting CreateRealMagic.com, users generated personalized snow globes to share on social media.
The experience ran in 45+ languages and used AI to recreate the look, voice, and personality of the 1931 Sundblom Santa.
Coca‑Cola partnered with Accenture, Microsoft, Leonardo.ai, Mimic, and OpenAI to develop the platform, letting fans share memories, ask questions about the North Pole, or even chat about Santa’s favorite reindeer.
AI-Powered Storytelling
The “Holidays Are Coming” films were refreshed with AI, delivering hyper-localized content so viewers saw Coca‑Cola trucks pass by landmarks in their cities. AI-generated video, music, and imagery enabled the brand to scale personalized storytelling globally while keeping the festive magic intact.
Real-World Holiday Magic
Offline, Coca‑Cola brought the campaign to life in person. “Anyone Can Be Santa” events took place in Finland, NYC, Mexico, the Philippines, and Japan, while the Coca‑Cola Caravan rolled out the “Kindness Travels” tour, hosting local experiences with social impact partners to spread inclusion and holiday cheer.
Bottom Line
The 2024 campaign showed that Coca‑Cola could combine heritage, human creativity, and AI to create a holiday experience that was interactive, personalized, and globally celebrated.
In our books, that is an absolute winner.
