With Coca-Cola finding the only way possible to make its traditional truck ad even blander and bleaker than usual – by using AI – Pepsi has an open goal this Christmas.

Well, its ad at least features human beings – eventually. Initially, we get shots of offices and gyms, abandoned by people off to celebrate the festive holidays. It’s a novel angle, even if it does look faintly post-apocalyptic.

Eventually, a slightly funky remix of ‘It’s Beginning to Look a Lot Like Christmas’ kicks in, and we see Pepsi Max at the centre of the fun. To offer a real point of difference, it could be a bit cooler – generic celebrations include lame party games and karaoke, while chuckles are generated by a granny wearing some cool shades, which feels like something from a big supermarket ad – but there is some life here.

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