McDonald's and Burger King at war over AI-generated posters

Whenever a new technology (or meme format) drops, it's only ever a matter of time until the brands get involved. AI chatbot ChatGPT has been making waves online for a few months now, but it's only just starting to enter the corporate realm. And now, it's the latest ammunition in the never-ending burger wars. 

That's right, McDonald's has used ChatGPT to create a typographical poster asking 'What is the most iconic burger in the world?' And almost immediately, Burger King has responded with its own, with the follow-up question, 'And which is the biggest?' (Looking for more inspiration? Check out the best print ads ever).

McDonald's and Burger King AI posters

(Image credit: DAVID São Paulo)

The ads themselves are pleasingly minimal, letting the text do all the talking – although it's a nice touch to see the font colour change to represent the various layers of a Big Mac and a Whopper. The text itself is also as simple and informative as you'd expect from ChatGPT, describing the history of the Big Mac ("First introduced in 1967, etc.), and the, er, size of the Whopper ("a robust and satisfying Burger").

Burger King AI poster

(Image credit: DAVID São Paulo)

Really, the impressive thing here is how quickly agency David São Paulo reacted, with the Burger King poster popping up next to the McDonald's ad just one day later.  Right now, the two ads are sitting side-by-side across São Paulo. If we were to nitpick, we'd say it's pretty obvious that Burger King used a more comprehensive text prompt than the poster suggests (which is the biggest what?) – but hey, it's all a bit of fun.

We've seen plenty of brand beef between Burger King and McDonald's, from the former's Mouldy Whopper ad to those burning posters. But when it comes to the meatier design work – the full brand identity – we reckon Burger King still has the edge.

Thank you for reading 5 articles this month* Join now for unlimited access

Enjoy your first month for just £1 / $1 / €1

*Read 5 free articles per month without a subscription

Join now for unlimited access

Try first month for just £1 / $1 / €1

Daniel Piper
Senior News Editor

Daniel Piper is Creative Bloq’s Senior News Editor. As the brand’s Apple authority, he covers all things Mac, iPhone, iPad and the rest. He also reports on the worlds of design, branding and tech. Daniel joined Future in 2020 (an eventful year, to say the least) after working in copywriting and digital marketing with brands including ITV, NBC, Channel 4 and more. Outside of Future, Daniel is a global poetry slam champion and has performed at festivals including Latitude, Bestival and more. He is the author of Arbitrary and Unnecessary: The Selected Works of Daniel Piper (Selected by Daniel Piper).