Cursed AI Images & Why You Shouldn’t Leave AI Alone with Ads
Updated: 2 days ago
AI has a place in paid media. It can help analyze big data sets, spot patterns faster, and support delivery in ways ad algorithms have basically been doing for years. We’re into efficiency and think AI can be incredibly effective when used the right way.
What we’re not into is letting a platform auto-generate brand creative and calling it a day. Here at Central Station, we believe that when AI is used as a stand-in for strategy, creative thinking or brand judgment, things can unravel quickly.
Audiences can smell AI slop from a scroll away. Millennials and Gen Z especially will not simply ignore a weirdly cursed AI image. They will screenshot it, meme it, and invite the whole internet to the roast.
A sponsored cycling ad started making the rounds after people noticed the image looked suspiciously AI-generated. Instead of focusing on the product, the internet did what the internet does best: zoomed in and found the weird details.
The pressure to automate is real. So is the risk to your brand. Here’s the deal with AI-generated ad creative
We’re finding this is a very clear preview of where paid media is heading: more platforms are adding built-in AI tools, and more teams are being, let’s be honest, pressured to let automation handle parts of the creative process.
Our paid media team is already seeing more ad platforms promote built-in AI generators as part of campaign setup, and the results are… generous, let’s say.
The images shown here were automatically generated by the ad platform for our client, St. Francis Herb Farm. To be clear, they never went live. They were simply suggested by the platform as possible creative options, and they were so wildly off-brand, off-product and off-planet that we had to share them with the client team.
Thankfully, they found them as funny as we did.
“The tools we see marketed in ad platforms, like image and text generators, seem more designed for brand-new advertisers or people selling their own stuff without a creative team available. It's very much prioritizing quantity over quality,” explains Matt Griffith, Paid Media Manager here at Central Station.
For brands that do have established standards, strategy, and resources, these tools can quickly become a disaster. 🫣
The data behind AI-generated ads and brand trust
👉 IAB reports that advertisers using AI are most likely to use it for social media ads at 85% and display ads at 73%.
👉 82% of ad executives believe Gen Z and Millennial consumers feel positive about AI-generated ads, but only 45% of those consumers actually do.
👉 Adobe’s AI trends roundup includes that 30% of marketers believe generative AI poses significant risks to brand safety, and 43% of businesses are put off by inaccuracies or biases in AI content.
AI can absolutely be part of the process. It can help with exploration, efficiency, testing and production support. It can give teams a starting point, a spark or a weird little nightmare to laugh about in Slack.
But it still needs people around it. People who understand the strategy and know the audience.
When talking to Central Station Creative Director (Retail), Rocco Pelle, about his take on this, here’s what he had to say.
“I see AI as exactly what it is—a tool. It's incredibly valuable for supporting broader creative work and initiatives, whether that's helping articulate ideas, generating quick visual concepts, or completing isolated tasks efficiently. However, when it comes to developing something truly original, strategically considered, and creatively unique, that's where AI still has limitations. The strongest outcomes come from combining AI's speed and efficiency with human creativity, judgment, and experience.”
Use AI to move faster. Use it to analyze, test and learn. Use it to make the process smarter.
Just maybe don’t leave it alone with your brand or your customers’ eyeballs…the internet is always watching.
How we can help
At Central Station, we make sure your ads are built to perform. From paid media strategy and creative direction to content, design, and campaign execution. We look beyond to determine whether a paid ad feels like your brand, makes sense to your audience, and earns attention for the right reasons.
Want a second set of eyes on what your brand is putting into market?
Start with a brand review, a paid ads audit, or a consultation. We’ll help you spot what’s working, what isn’t, and where your biggest opportunities are.
