It's All Fake: Mango's AI-Generated Campaign Debut

The fear of robots taking over the world is one step closer to becoming real, as Mango creates the first campaign entirely generated by artificial intelligence. This move marks a significant milestone in the advertising industry, but not everyone is celebrating. While AI's capabilities are undeniably impressive, this campaign raises several concerns, particularly regarding its impact on mental health and beauty standards.

With so many previous movements and campaigns by brands to promote mental health and spread awareness regarding unrealistic beauty standards, it seems like we are going backward with this campaign. In recent years, brands have made concerted efforts to showcase diverse body types, natural beauty, and authenticity in their marketing.

However, Mango’s latest campaign appears to undermine these advancements and opt to advance more towards technology. Their Sunset Dream line is targeted at teens, where, according to the Mental Health Foundation, "35% said their body image causes them to ‘often’ or ‘always’ worry." Yet, they use AI-generated models with flawless skin and perfectly symmetrical features. Although in some shots, and if you look long enough, you can tell something's off and that the model is not real, this campaign risks making unrealistic beauty standards even more unrealistic, as they are not even set by humans but by machines.

The process for their Sunset Dream line starts by photographing each piece in the collection. These images are then used to train a generative AI model, guiding it to position the clothing on the virtual models. Once the AI-generated images are created, Mango’s art team carefully selects the best ones and does further retouching and editing in the studio to bring the final visuals to life.

Of course, not every advertisement has to champion body positivity and even runway models are chosen based on how clothes fit them best. But how can we, as consumers, trust the representation of the clothes if they are not even modeled on real people? The essence of fashion is to see how clothing looks and moves on actual bodies, something that AI-generated models cannot truly convey.

Mango claims its use of AI is to show its "commitment to innovation," but is it really about symbolizing a technological revolution or just a clever way to cut costs? While AI offers remarkable advancements, its application in areas that can affect self-perception needs careful consideration.

As we continue to explore the exciting possibilities that technology offers, let’s ensure that it’s used thoughtfully, keeping authenticity at the heart of our progress. After all, true innovation doesn’t just break new ground—it also uplifts and empowers the people it touches.