Key Takeaways
- Apple VP Tor Myhren apologizes for the controversial iPad Pro ad, admitting it “missed the mark” with the Crush! video.
- Artists express anger and disappointment at Apple’s ad, with many feeling uncomfortable by the content.
- Apple CEO, Tim Cook, faces backlash on social media for the ad, leading to accusations of insensitivity and an ego-centric approach.
After an advertisement for the new iPad Pro caused an uproar on social media, Apple has now apologized. On Thursday, Tor Myhren, Apple’s VP of marketing and communications, responded to a request for comment from Ad Age and said in a statement that they “missed the mark.”
The minute-long advertisement, which was posted by Tim Cook on X (formerly Twitter) as well as YouTube and aptly titled “Crush!,” shows a variety of objects being crushed under a hydraulic press, including musical instruments, audio recording equipment, art supplies, a ceramic Angry Bird, and a genuinely terrifying 3-dimensional worried face emoji. After everything is crushed and liquefied, the one object that remains is the new iPad Pro.
Tim Cook is being ratioed
‘Congratulations, you are today’s discourse!’
Tor Myhren’s apology acknowledged the anger specifically expressed by artists in his statement to Ad Age, “Creativity is in our DNA at Apple, and it’s incredibly important to us to design products that empower creatives all over the world. Our goal is to always celebrate the myriad of ways users express themselves and bring their ideas to life through iPad. We missed the mark with this video, and we’re sorry.”
Reactions to the advertisement generally follow the pattern that the “Crush!” ad lacks respect for artists, presents Apple as having a massive ego, and left a bad taste in the mouths of many. Many artists responding to Tim Cook’s post on X expressed feeling uncomfortable and repulsed by Apple’s choice of advertisement, with many calling it disastrous for Apple’s brand as a whole, and many stating that they no longer feel comfortable purchasing Apple products because of the ad spot. Some even called it “dystopian,” with one user calling back to Apple’s famous 1984 commercial.
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In response to Cook’s post, Greek economist and politician Yanis Varoufakis wrote “Tim Cook has just revealed his techno-feudal urge to crush everything of cultural value in his quest for power.”
British actor Hugh Grant also chimed in on X, writing “The destruction of the human experience. Courtesy of Silicon Valley.”
The advertisement really brought everyone together on X to do their favorite thing: get angry in unison.
As of publishing, Tim Cook’s post on X has over 15,000 replies, 31,000 reposts and quotes, and 27,000 likes. That, dear reader, is what we call “being ratioed.” Cook has not addressed the controversy personally, nor has he posted on X since yesterday, where he last made a post about ongoing flooding in Brazil.
One thing is very clear from the Crush! debacle online. The advertisement really brought everyone together on X to do their favorite thing: get angry in unison. As science communicator and YouTuber Hank Green put it, “Congratulations, you are today’s discourse!”
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