Oreo uses actor Farhan Akhtar's AI voice when words fail

Oreo has rolled out a campaign ‘say it with Oreo’ featuring actor Farhan Akhtar.

Conceptualised by Leo Burnett India, the films through Akhtar's AI voice aims to leverage the insight that everyone from children to adults could do with a little bit of playfulness to cut through the seriousness of their daily conversations.

In the first film, Akhtar meets with the brand to discuss the ad film they are shooting together. The Oreo representative briefs Akhtar about the campaign and offers him the new 'say it with Oreo' cookies to try out. Akhtar learns that these cookies can be used as a means of communication in situations where words cannot be used. Akhtar learns that consumers will be able to scan the packet through a QR code and use the new cookie to convey their messages.

The subsequent films depict Akhtar experimenting with the QR code feature, listening to his own voice in various scenarious where people can be at loss for words.

Nitin Saini, vice president, marketing, Mondelez India, said, “Since its launch, Oreo has always tried to build stronger connections in families and in culture, through its’ ‘stay playful’ purpose and platform. 'Say It With Oreo' takes it a step further by inviting people to cut through the seriousness of adulthood and rediscover the joy of uninhibited, playful conversations with the help of tech. We are confident that with its unique and fresh approach this campaign will resonate with, connect, and help build levity in everyday conversation!”

Mayuresh Dubhashi, ‪group executive creative director - Leo Burnett, said, “Say it With Oreo, a first of its kind campaign that lets people express what they want to, at times when they can't. Essentially a pack of words when you are at a loss of words. Using Farhan Akhtar's wit and charm, a voice cloning AI and ChatGPT, we've tried to create a tool for users to find playful ways to express themselves when they find themselves in awkward or weird life situations. This continues Oreo's mission to make the world that bit more playful."

Varun Shah, ‪executive vice president - prodigious and Content Factory, added, “This is perhaps one of the biggest AI led campaigns of recent times, where we are making unlimited fully personalized messaging at scale a possibility. We have partnered with one of the best AI voice engines to deliver a never heard before experience for Oreo – recreating Farhan Akhtar’s iconic voice to tailor personalised messages for the audiences. For this campaign we are not only production partners but truly technology and technological activation and deployment partners. This campaign is the true reflection of the integration that we can deliver under Studio POP and the Publicis Power of One model and we are very excited for the playful moments it will create for the brand.”

Shekhar Banerjee, chief client office and north and west head, Wavemaker India, said, “For every unanswered or bizarre question, we choose to ignore in life, Oreo has created a perfect answer. We have achieved this with a unique blend of a celebrity, generative AI, Voice cloning AI tech and power of media. Another example of how AI and tech when amplified with the right mix of media can significantly enhance our engagement with consumers at a massive scale.”