Apple Apologizes for New iPad Pro Ad That Crushed Creative Tools

Apple issued yesterday a rare apology for its new iPad Pro ad that showed various creative tools being destroyed by a giant crusher, with the destructive process giving birth to the company’s brand new high-end tablet. The commercial received a polarized reception from creative professionals, which is pretty much the audience Apple is targeting with its new iPad Pro. Anyway, Apple has now acknowladged that showing various tools that are still useful for lots of people being crushed to bits was probably not in very good taste.

In a statement shared with Ad Age, Tor Myhren, Apple’s VP of marketing communications, apologized for the ad, which was also proudly posted by Apple CEO Tim Cook on X. Ad Age also reported that the company has canceled its plan to run the ad on TV.

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. pic.twitter.com/6PeGXNoKgG

— Tim Cook (@tim_cook) May 7, 2024

Creativity is in our DNA at Apple, and it’s incredibly important to us to design products that empower creatives all over the world,” Myhren said. “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.”

Apple has released a couple of iconic ads over the years, starting with its ‘1984’ Superbowl ad for the Macintosh directed by Ridley Scott. Others have been a big source of debate, such as the infamous “What’s a computer” ad for… the iPad Pro. The high-end tablets do offer a great combination of great design and solid specs, though iPadOS still leaves a lot to be desired in terms of productivity and multitasking. This can make the iPad Pro hard to recommend when cheaper laptops can do more with a touch screen and a keyboard that doesn’t cost an extra $300.

The new iPad Pro is the first product powered by the company’s new M4 chip, and there was a big focus on AI performance during the official presentation on Tuesday. This is also the first iPad with an “Ultra Retina XDR” OLED screen display with an optional matte screen option.

While the hardware seems excellent, Apple hopes that developers will take advantage of its new M4 chip to create more AI-powered iPad apps. According to Bloomberg’s Mark Gurman, the company is also planning to refresh its entire Mac lineup with M4 chips between the fall of 2024 and the beginning of next year.