Pip & Nut has launched a new TV advert that uses AI as a production tool while keeping creative direction in human hands, as the brand looks to build on its distinctive “Obsession Spreads” platform.

The nut butter brand said the advert achieved a 5.9 “Exceptional” Star Rating from System1, placing it in the top 1 per cent of TV ads.

The campaign takes Pip & Nut’s red squirrel asset from out-of-home into TV for the first time, centring on the character’s single-minded pursuit of a jar of peanut butter in a nod to the brand’s most devoted fans.

Created by Pip & Nut’s in-house team alongside director Ali Dickinson and produced by creative agency and AI studio Scary Robots, the advert uses AI to animate existing real-life imagery rather than relying on live animals or full CGI.

Pip & Nut said the squirrel featured in the advert was originally photographed by a wildlife photographer in Sweden, with that image then used as the foundation for the TV execution. Product shots were filmed in-camera, supported by food stylists and photography experts, while a 3D-printed squirrel was also used to create realistic shadows and reflections.

The brand said the approach allowed it to increase creative impact while working more efficiently within production budgets, while still ensuring that the idea, direction and wider craft remained human-led.

The advert will run across Sky, ITV and Channel 4 from 20 April, with Pip & Nut saying it is expected to reach 52 per cent of UK adults, or 27.4 million people, across April and May. The campaign will also be supported by the brand’s London out-of-home activity, which it said reaches 44 per cent of London adults.

Pip & Nut marketing director Jacq Ellis Jones said: “We’ve always known that once people try Pip & Nut, they become a bit obsessed – and our squirrel has become the perfect expression of that.

“Bringing that character to TV was the opportunity, and the challenge. We wanted to stay true to what people already love, while creating something that felt simple, distinctive and full of personality.

“AI played a role in helping us do that, but it was never the idea. The idea came from the brand, from the behaviour we see in our fans, and from the creative team behind it.

“We were very clear that AI should support the process, not replace it. The balance between real craft, human direction and new technology is what made the advert work – and ultimately what drove such a strong response in testing.”

Director Ali Dickinson added: “I love that we kept the honesty of the original wild nature photography, then pushed the squirrels into performances that would have been almost impossible to capture.

“To me, this felt like the perfect use of AI, bringing Pip & Nut’s beautiful photography to life, while keeping all the delicious bits, from the food photography to the sound design, handcrafted by real people.”

Scary Robots co-founder and executive producer Daniel Wimborne said the team had not set out to make an “AI ad”, but simply “a great ad”.

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