SKF revives Greta Garbo in AI-generated advertisement

by@Reuters

Summary

Swedish ball-bearing manufacturer SKF has generated attention with a new advertisement featuring an AI-generated likeness of legendary actress Greta Garbo, who passed away in 1990. This innovative approach employed advanced AI tools from companies like ByteDance and Google to recreate Garbo, without using archival footage or photos, and was developed in collaboration with her estate. While the ad aims to celebrate Garbo's legacy, it has sparked a mix of praise and criticism regarding the ethical implications of using deceased celebrities' likenesses in marketing, a trend that has gained prominence as AI technologies continue to advance and facilitate "synthetic resurrection." Prominent figures in the industry, including actor George Clooney, have expressed concerns over the potential for posthumous exploitation of actors’ images.

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Analysis

SKF: SKF is a Swedish manufacturer specializing in ball bearings and related industrial products. The company created and released the AI-generated advertisement reviving Greta Garbo to promote its brand and history with Swedish industry. Google: Google is a major technology company that develops AI tools including the Gemini platform. Its Gemini Nano Banana Pro model was one of the image-generation tools employed by SKF for the advertisement. Greta Garbo: Greta Garbo was a leading Swedish-American Hollywood actress of the 1930s golden era who appeared in an early film promoting Swedish industries including SKF before retiring in 1941 and passing away in 1990. Her AI-recreated likeness appears in the current SKF advertisement, generated entirely from text prompts rather than archival footage. Henry Ajder: Henry Ajder is an AI advisor and researcher focused on synthetic media and its societal impacts. He described the SKF advertisement as an example of AI-superpowered 'synthetic resurrection' of deceased individuals in advertising. Per Nilsson: Per Nilsson is head of communication and brand at SKF and oversaw the production of the Garbo advertisement. He explained that the project used text prompts with various AI tools and obtained permissions from the Greta Garbo estate and family. Actor Concerns: Prominent actors have publicly voiced worries about unauthorized or posthumous use of their images in future marketing. AI in Marketing: AI tools are rapidly advancing capabilities for generating realistic synthetic media in commercial campaigns. Ethical Debates: The recreation of deceased celebrities' likenesses in advertisements is drawing mixed reactions including praise, debate, and criticism from observers and industry figures.

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