Starbucks scandal in South Korea: the group blames AI and regrets a “sharp decline in sales”

After a week of calls for boycott and popular unrest, the Shinsegae group was forced to explain itself. The operator of Starbucks in South Korea took stock this Tuesday of the controversy surrounding an advertisement evoking the repression of the pro-democracy uprising in 1980.

The group, which operates the American brand under license, regretted a “strong decline in sales” and blamed the use of artificial intelligence for the advertising campaign at the origin of this outcry.

An advertisement “validated without opening the attachment”

The controversy arose from a local promotion presenting the May 18 public holiday as “Tank Day” in order to promote reusable cups. This title aroused strong indignation, because it evoked the military vehicles used against pro-democracy demonstrators in Gwangju, on the anniversary of the uprising. Official figures at the time showed 165 civilians killed and 65 missing.

“Relevant employees said they asked AI for suggestions and the anniversary never crossed their minds,” Jeon Sang-jin, an executive at Shinsegae, told reporters. These employees “claim to have only realized the potentially problematic nature of the campaign after the strong public reaction,” he added.

“The investigation also revealed that some of the seven officials who approved the campaign had validated it as a simple formality, without opening the attachment” and to speed up the process, “the review procedure of the legal department was neglected,” he continued.

“This incident (…) highlighted a lack of social and historical sensitivity within Starbucks Korea,” the official concluded. The police are responsible for a separate investigation.

A national controversy

South Korean President Lee Jae Myung was quickly indignant at a campaign “making a mockery” of pro-democracy activists, saying he was “revolted by this inhuman and shameful conduct, a lucrative maneuver which flouts fundamental human rights and democracy”.

Following the hasty dismissal last week of Son Jung-hyun, head of the Starbucks Korea unit, the Shinsegae chairman apologized on Tuesday. “I take very seriously the fact that many people feel deep pain and anger (…) I take full responsibility,” Chung Yong-jin said.

The controversy extends to the entertainment sector: actor Jung Min-chan was forced to leave the musical “Diaghilev” after posting a photo of himself in a Starbucks.