Starburst and Generative AI Try Something 'Different Every Time'

Generative AI is such a sweet and juicy creative tool these days. Who can resist deploying it across campaigns?

Not Starburst, that’s for sure. The classic candy brand just unveiled a multimedia push, “Different Every Time,” its first major initiative in a dozen years. Cutting-edge tech powers the band message.

The very vibe-y content, we’re told, “goes against the sameness fed to us by the algorithms and status quo trends of today.”

So, in a bid against conformity, the brand harnessed the most hyped methods in sight? Maybe Starburst is leading the revolt from within. As always with advertising, it’s best not to probe too deep.

Soon, AI could become like auto tune and pitch correction in music: an artistic choice so prevalent, that work eschewing such techniques will seem quaint or passé.

The effort is sprightly and colorful, clearly geared toward Gen-Z, though its trippy AI stylings might not be to everyone’s taste. Our take: It’s a tad robo-creepy, but in a good way. There’s an unnatural edge that feels compelling. It just works.

“Starburst is a unique product in that there are endless ways to enjoy them,” says Colin Selikow, CCO at DDB Chicago, which developed the push with Critical Mass. “We wanted to deliver on that product truth in the new work by creating a platform that is literally different every time you experience it.”

Such differentiation lives mainly in social media, with Snapchat filters through Spotify playlists.

“Creating distinction within the candy space can be difficult,” Selikow says. “Brands are competing with the endless variety of entertaining content available on so many social platforms. Advertising often gets lost. So, creating an experience of novelty and discovery every time makes the work that much more effective.”