Polaroid just dropped the most iconic anti-AI ad of the year

How much of your camera roll do you really remember? That's the question asked by one of the posters in Polaroid's latest campaign, which takes aim at digital over-saturation and AI. Designed to promote the brand's new Flip camera, 'The Camera for an Analogue Life’ is one of the most stirring 'back to basics' campaigns we've seen for a while.

Combining Polaroid photos with provocative copy lines including, “AI can't generate sand between your toes,” and “Real stories. Not stories & reels.”, the campaign, designed in-house, is a timely reminder of the importance of connection and living in the moment. Like all the best print ads, these stick in the mind for a while.

"We are analog creatures, built to connect through our senses but the more we lose ourselves in digital algorithms, the more we drift away from empathy and real connection," says Patricia Varella, Brand and Creative Director at Polaroid. "There is something magical in a Polaroid picture. It captures the humanness in all of us, wrinkles and all, and reminds us that the best of life happens in the real, physical world."

The campaign has proven a hit online, with social media users praising the aesthetic and the message. "A stellar marketing strategy formed by digital saturation and online fatigue," one Substack user comments, while another adds, "Maybe I’m just a sucker for my childhood & millennial nostalgia, but I love these little reminders to be human."

Polaroid launched the campaign in high-traffic areas like JFK Airport, city centers, busy streets, and next to Apple Stores and Google offices in New York City and London. "By deliberately placing billboards and fly posters next to spaces synonymous with tech culture," Polaroid says it created "a striking juxtaposition, prompting passersby to pause and reconsider their relationship with the digital world."

We've seen plenty of other examples of ads that tap into tech fatigue, but with its perfect blend of visual nostalgia and a pertinent message, Polaroid's might just be the best yet.