Google has dropped its "Dear Sydney" ads, and it looks like the bad guys have been defeated The Gemini AI ad has been dropped from the 2024 Paris Olympics broadcast

The ad featured a father describing his daughter's excitement over track and field star Sydney McLaughlin-Levron Later in the ad, the father uses the AI assistant Gemini to help his daughter write a fan letter to Sydney

"Quite simply, the Google Gemini ad is infuriating because it embraces and celebrates the very worst of AI-powered tools," wrote Philip Michaels, Tom's Guide's mobile editor in chief

"If this is Google's attempt to sell the capabilities of AI in general and Gemini in particular to an unsuspecting public, it's way off the mark

As reported by The Hollywood Reporter, Google is one of the major sponsors of the Olympics, along with Samsung, which provided custom Z Flip 6 phones to Olympic athletes Google and Samsung are partnering to make a strong push for AI and AI tools, with the Gemini Assistant as one component

An ad is below for reference

A Google spokesperson told THR, "The ads were tested well before airing, but in light of feedback, we decided to phase the ads out of the Olympic rotation"

We are more than a little curious as to who they tested this ad with

This is just the latest in a series of poorly considered ads by major companies that don't seem to understand what people want from their technology

Apple was forced to run its infamous "crash" ad in May The Internet reacted negatively to this iPad commercial, which showed a giant hydraulic press smashing various objects to symbolize creativity Apple intended to show how much more it packed into the new thinner iPad Pro model, but viewers saw the ad as Big Tech essentially crushing creativity

In June, a zombified Toys "R" Us caused controversy with a commercial produced by OpenAI's Sola Instead, this hedge fund-destroyed shell retailer exposed the uncanny valley with accusations of using AI in "horrible ways"