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It was supposed to be a clever product demonstration for Apple’s latest sleek, artificial intelligence-powered iPad Pro. But the brand, typically praised for its advertising, sparked a wave of backlash for a commercial that crushes and destroys creative tools.
In just a couple of days since its release, Apple’s “Crush” has become one of the most controversial and debated recent ads. Critics have called it “soul-crushing,” “disgusting” and “destructive.”
Even film royalty, British actor Hugh Grant, weighed in on the spot, posting on X: “The destruction of the human experience. Courtesy of Silicon Valley.”
“Crush” promotes what Apple is calling its thinnest product ever, the 13-inch iPad Pro, by highlighting what users can do with the tablet’s applications, such as editing films or creating digital artwork. In the spot, developed in-house, a hydraulic press flattens objects including a piano, guitar, books, paint cans, cameras and a sculpture. When the carnage ends, the crusher lifts to reveal an iPad Pro.
Apple is adept at using human stories and craft to demonstrate its products, and many of those ads have won industry awards. But at a time when many creative people are skeptical or fearful of how technology may jeopardize their professions, this one hit differently.
“Given Apple’s market and cultural domination, the semiotics of crushing beautiful and inspiring creative tools seems insensitive and gives easy ammunition to the haters,” said Ian Heartfield, co-founder and chief creative officer of agency New Commercial Arts.
This isn’t about creative conjecture, either. Consumers were equally shocked, surprised and confused by Apple’s execution, per data from consumer sentiment business Zappi. The company gauged emotional reactions to the spot and found that it overindexed on all three feelings. The ad made just 26.7% of consumers feel happy, against a benchmark average of 36%.
In the U.S., one in five consumers said they thought the ad portrayed content that people could find offensive. Despite this, younger people found the ad “satisfying,” likening it to a popular YouTube and TikTok series where random objects are squished under a hydraulic press.