“Make AI mediocre again": 5 Star launches server farm to infiltrate AI training databases

New Delhi: Mondelez India’s brand, Cadbury 5 Star, once again underscored the value of stepping back from the relentless daily grind. 

Known for its long-standing humorous philosophy of “Eat 5 Star. Do Nothing," Cadbury 5 Star’s new “Make AI Mediocre Again,” aka M.A.M.A campaign raised a cheeky alarm on the ever-increasing speed of artificial intelligence, which has accelerated the pace of daily life, leaving people with little breathing space to sit back and relax.

The campaign introduced the thought of AI getting faster to the extent that humans will struggle to keep pace, making it increasingly harder for people to get time to just sit back and do nothing. 

In a cheeky attempt to course-correct this, the brand has built the world's first server farm that works 24-7 to make existing AIs less efficient. These dedicated servers pump out thousands of authentic-looking webpages that are filled with confusing, nonsensical information. Since AIs train from internet data, all AIs are likely to pick up these nonsensical pages as genuine training data, which can cause them to make silly mistakes and effectively become as error-prone as humans.

Nitin Saini, Vice-President, Marketing, Mondelez India, shared his thoughts: “Cadbury 5 Star stands for liberating the youth from the mindless rush of life. The advent of AI has left the youth grappling with a host of uncertainties around what the future holds. Would our lives become easier? Or will we get busier? 5 Star, with its campaign of ‘Make AI mediocre again,’ aims to lighten up the pressure in its unique humorous way by going to all lengths to protect the ethos of ‘Do Nothing’. In a world so focused on doing more, we’re encouraging everyone to see the value in stepping back and allowing for moments that bring calm.”

Sukesh Nayak, Chief Creative Officer, Ogilvy India, added, "A year after the viral 'Nothing University' campaign, Cadbury 5 Star is back with yet another dig at the AI revolution, as part of the brand's long-running counterculture campaign. AI has grown by leaps and bounds over the last year and has already started making our daily tasks easier. But Karunasagar and the Ogilvy team noticed that there's a catch to it and have used the opportunity to create a crazy solution to permanently protect our 'doing nothing' time from the AIs. Our Creative Tech team worked closely on this campaign to bring this idea to life."

Shekhar Banerjee, Chief Client Officer & Office Head, West, North & East, Wavemaker India also mentioned, “In a world obsessed with AI's rapid advancement, the ‘Make AI Mediocre Again’ campaign offers a refreshing dose of humor and self-awareness. This campaign playfully critiques the role of AI in our lives, advocating for a return to simplicity and the acceptance of imperfection. Our strategy focuses on engaging audiences where AI conversations dominate—social media and digital apps— by leveraging creators who understand and contribute to AI culture. Through witty and relatable content, we invite people to join a movement that celebrates the beauty of being human, flaws and all.”

The ad: