This creative director chatbot is a real jerk

The AICP teamed with Joan on this call for entries to AICP and AICP Next

Published On
Mar 01, 2019

Editor's Pick

The Association of Independent Commercial Producers has taken an unusual approach to remind the industry that today, March 1, is the final day to submit to its annual AICP and AICP Next Awards, the honorees of which become part of The Museum of Modern Art’s archives.

The organization teamed up with agency Joan to create a creative director chatbot, which promises to help entrants ready their work for the show. The official description of the bot, from AICP President and CEO Matt Miller, goes like this:

“We have covertly syphoned thinking patterns from the brains of the hundreds of the most storied creative directors in the history of advertising and marketing, leaving us with a treasure trove of data the we can now put to use. Unlike some of today’s more dubious data gathering efforts, it’s being used only for good–to save the creative world at this stressful time of awards show entries in the same way that day-to-day creative directors save the real world from afflictions like dandruff.”

But when you actually interact with it, you quickly discover that it’s just a big fat jerk.

“So… this is embarrassing… CD Bot has already forgotten your name. See, CD Bot is just like your regular CD, only digital. I’m sorry. It’s not personal,” it says, seconds after introduction.

If you tell it you are planning to submit work in print, CD Bot snaps back, “'I’m sorry. I don't know what that is. CD Bot is from the future. Perhaps you want to talk to CD Fax Machine?”

Joan co-founder Jaime Robinson, who will serve as chair of AICP Next this year, explained that her team had fun imparting the bot with the cliched but real characteristics of bad creative leaders they’d encountered throughout the years.

Ultimately, however, CD Bot proves helpful, reminding users that March 1 is the deadline (with late deadline on March 8) and directing them to the entry site.