\n<\/p>\n
Google is not winning any gold medals for its Olympics ads this year. After days of backlash, the company has decided to pull<\/a> its controversial \u201cDear Sydney\u201d ad from Olympic coverage.<\/p>\n<\/div>\n In the 60-second ad, a father seeks to write a fan letter on behalf of his daughter to her Olympic idol, US track star Sydney McLaughlin-Levrone. The premise is the sort of treacly ad you\u2019d expect to see at the Olympics, but things take a twist when instead of helping his daughter write a letter, he just has Gemini do it for them. \u201cThis has to be just right,\u201d he says, before prompting Gemini to tell Sydney how inspiring she is, that his daughter plans to break her record one day, and to add a \u201csorry, not sorry\u201d joke at the end. <\/p>\n<\/div>\n From the get-go, the ad has drawn the ire of the internet. Many have lambasted the ad on<\/a> social<\/a> media<\/a> for completely missing the point of writing a fan letter. (Which is, ostensibly, to make a heart-to-heart, human-to-human connection by being vulnerable and expressing how much your hero\u2019s work has impacted your life.) Washington Post <\/em>columnist Alexandra Petri penned a takedown<\/a> stating she wants to \u201cthrow a sledgehammer into the television every time I see it.\u201d Others have pointed out<\/a> that the ad encourages taking the easy way out instead of practicing self-expression.<\/p>\n<\/div>\n Meanwhile, in a statement<\/a> to<\/a> multiple<\/a> outlets<\/a>, Google acknowledged the negative feedback but said that the commercial wasn\u2019t meant to imply Gemini could completely replace humans. The ad was meant to \u201cshow how the Gemini app can provide a starting point, thought starter, or early draft for someone looking for ideas for their writing.\u201d <\/p>\n<\/div>\n This wouldn\u2019t be the first time big tech stepped in it while trying to showcase the power of AI in an ad. A few months ago, Apple caught flack for its \u201cCrush\u201d ad<\/a>, which showed a hydraulic press squishing creative tools into a shiny new iPad. People were understandably upset by the imagery, especially as AI sparks fears that technology will steal and replace the work of writers, artists, performers, and other creatives.<\/p>\n<\/div>\n