(Reuters) – Apple apologized on Thursday after an ad for its latest iPad Pro model sparked criticism by showing the animation of musical instruments and the suppression of other symbols of creativity, Ad Age magazine reported.
“Our goal has always been to celebrate the myriad ways users can express themselves and bring their thoughts to life with the iPad. We missed the mark with this video, sorry,” Ad Age quoted the iPhone maker as saying.
An Apple spokeswoman declined to comment, but referred inquiries to an Ad Age report.
The ad, titled “Crush,” has garnered more than a million views on Apple’s YouTube channel and was shared by its CEO Tim Cook on social media platform X. It shows the destruction of various creative tools and objects such as a camera, guitar, piano and paint. An industrial crusher.
Then the smash reveals the newly released iPad, which hints at just how much the new thin model includes.
Online commentators criticized the ad as insensitive and an unwelcome departure from the company’s historical stance on its brand.
In a post on X, actor Hugh Grant said the ad shows “the destruction of the human experience courtesy of Silicon Valley.”
The Cupertino-Calif.-based tech company on Tuesday unveiled a tablet with a new chip for artificial intelligence computing, rushing to catch up with its big tech rivals in the race to dominate the emerging technology.
The iPad Pro, which became available for order on Tuesday, has improved displays and is “the thinnest Apple product ever,” Apple said.
(This story has been corrected to say that the iPad Pro was available for order in column 9, not Thursday)
(Reporting by Rishabh Jaiswal in Bengaluru; Editing by Cynthia Osterman)
