Samsung gleefully joined this month’s Apple pile-on, unveiling a new ad for a Galaxy tablet that mocks its rival for a rare marketing misstep.
The 43-second spot released on social media shows a young woman navigating through assorted debris strewn on the floor before stopping at a broken guitar she picks up.
Studying sheet music displayed on her Galaxy Tab S9, she begins strumming a few chords, not caring that the damaged instrument is out of tune.
“Creativity cannot be crushed,” ran the Samsung ad in a clear dig at its competitor in Cupertino still reeling from a badly conceived advertisement.
We would never crush creativity. #UnCrushpic.twitter.com/qvlUqbRlnE
— Samsung Mobile US (@SamsungMobileUS) May 15, 2024
In a world where machines could soon prove superior to their creators, Apple thought the best metaphor when selling its first new iPad Pro in nearly two years was a giant hydraulic press figuratively and literally crushing creative tools humanity has relied on for centuries into one ultra-thin Apple tablet—all to a cheerful Sonny and Cher melody.
“Just think of all the things it’ll be used to create,” posted a giddy Tim Cook, only to be inundated with 19,000 replies of overwhelmingly angry consumers.
Storm prompts rare Apple apology
People like actor Hugh Grant came away from viewing the ad disgusted at what was viewed as a vulgar and obscene display of Silicon Valley techno-fetishism personally endorsed by Steve Jobs’ anointed successor as CEO, Tim Cook.
“Steve wouldn’t have shipped that ad,” wrote Paul Graham, who founded startup accelerator Y Combinator. “It would have pained him too much to watch.”
The destruction of the human experience. Courtesy of Silicon Valley. https://t.co/273XB3CfnF
— Hugh Grant (@HackedOffHugh) May 8, 2024
The backlash against its Crush! spot prompted Apple, a company that otherwise has long enjoyed a reputation for savvy ads that speak to the zeitgeist, to issue a rare apology.
“We missed the mark with this video, and we’re sorry,” Tor Myhren, vice president of marketing, told trade publication Ad Age last week.
In 2023, Apple ended Samsung’s 12-year run as the largest smartphone provider in the world. However, weakness in China allowed the South Korean giant to reclaim the top spot in the first quarter of this year.
That victory didn’t stop it from twisting the proverbial knife, however.
With Apple on the ropes over its poorly conceived ad, Samsung is currently trying to get the hashtag #UnCrush to trend on social media.