Read previewAn Olympics ad from Google depicting a father using its Gemini AI assistant to help his daughter compose a letter to her favorite athlete has drawn sharp criticism from online commentators. Google's "Dear Sydney" spot first aired on TV during the broadcast of the opening ceremony on July 24 and is also available on YouTube. Related stories"It follows a coherent story, focuses on characters with agency and vitality, and prioritizes people over the product," said Jon Evans, System1 chief customer officer, of Google's ad. Still, several ad experts have said Google's marketing department — which created the ad in-house rather than using an ad agency — should have done a better job of reading the room. The "Dear Sydney" spot was still airing on US TV on Tuesday morning, according to the measurement firm iSpot.

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Persons: —, USA's Sydney McLaughlin, McLaughlin, Shelly Palmer, Syracuse University's S.I, Jon Evans, Evans, System1, Kevin, Sabrina, Sydney, Maani Safa, Poppins, Safa, Malcolm Poynton, didn't, Lorraine Twohill, Josh Green Organizations: Service, Google, Gemini, Business, Paris Olympics, YouTube, Team USA, Syracuse University's, Newhouse School of Public Communications, NBC Sports, Cheil Locations: Paris