Tech giant Apple has said sorry for a controversial advert crushing various creative items in an industrial machine, saying it “missed the mark”.
The US iPhone maker launched an advert recently in which creative items, including a piano and guitar, were crushed by a hydraulic press.
It was an attempt to show how many creative tools had been compressed into the new device, but it sparked anger online, with people claiming it was attacking creativity.
Among creatives to hit out at Apple’s advert was British actor Hugh Grant, who posted on X: “The destruction of the human experience. Courtesy of Silicon Valley.”
In Ad Age, Apple’s vice president of marketing communications, Tor Myhren said: “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.”
The advert was posted online by Apple boss Tim Cook, who said: “Meet the new iPad Pro: the thinnest product we’ve ever created, the most advanced display we’ve ever produced, with the incredible power of the M4 chip. Just imagine all the things it’ll be used to create.”