Google benches tone-deaf 'Dear Sydney' AI spot from Olympics ad roster

Tech companies are used to pushing boundaries, with everybody looking to become the next disruptor. But especially when it comes to their advertising, sometimes they push past the boundaries of good taste into some seriously cringe-worthy territory. We’ve seen situations like that play out time and time again over the years, and in some of those cases the response is so overwhelmingly negative that the company involved sees no better alternative than just taking their ad down. Now Google is the latest advertiser to find itself in the hot seat, all in response to an AI-focused spot it’s been running for the Olympics.

The video in question depicts a father whose daughter shows an interest in athletics and emerges as a fan of track-and-field Olympian Sydney McLaughlin-Levrone. The “Dear Sydney” ad continues as the father wants to help his daughter craft the best possible fan letter to McLaughlin. So, what’s next? A trip to the library? An after-school creative writing program? Nope: Gemini AI can just write it for you.

While the ad presents that as a starting draft, presumably for the daughter to further tweak and personalize on her own, the idea of a young student being deprived the opportunity for personal growth and skill development, just because AI is easier and potentially delivers more polished results, is going over like a lead balloon. And now Variety (via The Verge) reports that Google has removed the spot from its Olympics package, with a spokesperson for the company telling the publication, “While the ad tested well before airing, given the feedback, we have decided to phase the ad out of our Olympics rotation.”

Google, for the moment, at least, has kept the clip up online, where you can still catch it in its complete cluelessness. Comments have been turned off, which sounds like the smartest move here on Google’s part.