Overview

An early-stage AI advertising startup partnered with real businesses in New York City to test how AI could deliver commercial-quality ads across different industries. The goal was to prove that effective advertising visuals could be generated with minimal prompting, while maintaining the polish and professionalism expected in real-world campaigns.

These ads are intended for storefront display, giving businesses bold, high-impact visuals that attract attention in physical spaces—not just online. The assets are being designed to be seen in windows, menus, in-store screens, and other public-facing formats.

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The Process

1. Experimentation Across Models
Multiple AI models were tested—covering photorealism, animation, and stylized outputs—to determine which could consistently produce usable assets for commercial advertising.

2. Real Client Projects
The startup provided a variety of NYC businesses across sectors such as food and beverage, fashion, entertainment, and premium services. For each, ads were developed that aligned with their branding and market needs.

3. Commercial Standards
Each output was evaluated against professional ad requirements:

Accurate product and brand representation
Clean composition and lighting
Readable text and logos
No visual deformities (hands, faces, props)

4. Feedback Loop
The results and challenges were shared back with the development team, creating a feedback cycle that improved model consistency and reduced errors over time.

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Applications

Food & Beverage (NYC cafés, restaurants, takeout spots): Polished food photography fused with lifestyle scenes to give small businesses national-level ad quality.
Fashion & Lifestyle (local boutiques and designers): Editorial-style visuals that established unique, branded aesthetics.
Entertainment & Events (NYC nightlife and venues): Concept-driven ads designed to stand out in competitive feeds and capture local attention.
Boxing & Fitness (local boxing gym): Gritty, cinematic visuals that captured the intensity, culture, and raw physicality of boxing — aligning with the gym’s brand identity and community focus.
Luxury & Services (high-end NYC businesses): Premium visuals with editorial polish to elevate brand perception.

Outcomes

Efficiency: Commercial-grade visuals created in hours with concise prompts.
Real-World Validation: Ads were created for real NYC businesses and prepared for use on storefronts, in-store screens, and physical signage.
Versatility: Consistent results achieved across industries and aesthetics.
Developer Value: Provided actionable insights on what worked, what failed, and how to optimize models for real-world ad creation.

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Conclusion

This case study demonstrates that AI can be used to create commercial-grade advertisements that align with a business’s brand guidelines and aesthetic standards. The work shows that high-quality, client-ready visuals can be produced efficiently and tailored across industries, including food, fashion, entertainment, fitness, and premium services.

These assets are currently being deployed across storefront displays and customer-facing environments throughout New York City. In the coming months, performance metrics and client feedback will offer deeper insight into the effectiveness of these campaigns in driving engagement and conversions.

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The Winning Reel

The curated ad that drove Phase 2’s success worked because it focused strictly on surf culture, selling the lifestyle to viewers rather than forcing products into the frame. Its authenticity came from careful guidance, niche understanding, and staying true to the culture.
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At the core, the surf community values high-quality action footage with skilled surfers while products remain secondary. The winning video embraced this principle. After the initial post showed high traction with more views, stronger engagement, and more likes than previous content (as planned), it was identified as the ideal candidate for amplification. Once performance data confirmed its momentum, budget was allocated to boost the post, further amplifying reach.

This reinforced the strategy: create content rooted in cultural authenticity, validate through organic activity, and then strategically invest in amplification to convert visibility into lasting community growth.