A Short Video, a Big Question: Rethinking Education and Brand Responsibility in the Age of AI

Lately, I’ve come across quite a few AI product marketing videos on Instagram. They’re certainly memorable, but not because of the technology they showcase. What stands out most is the uncomfortable message behind them.

The storyline usually goes like this: a professor asks students to complete an assignment or answer a question. One student uses AI to respond quickly. The professor questions this approach, calling it lazy. The student replies with a disrespectful attitude, saying they’ve learned more from AI than from the class, then picks up their bag and walks out.

The ad might intend to highlight AI’s impressive capabilities, but it ends up sending a troubling message. It suggests that technology can excuse arrogance and a lack of respect.

When Marketing Relies Too Heavily on Conflict

In a time when AI dominates headlines, companies are searching for ways to stand out. Many use stories that frame innovation and tradition as opposing forces to emphasize just how disruptive their products are. There is nothing wrong with showing how a product fits into real-life situations. But are we overlooking core values like mutual respect in the process?

This kind of ad usually follows a familiar formula:

• An old-fashioned authority figure expresses concern
• The AI user responds with boldness, sometimes crossing into arrogance
• The AI delivers a more accurate or faster result, making the authority figure look outdated
• The message ends with innovation winning over tradition

This formula is popular because it quickly creates conflict. It gets people to take sides, generates conversation, and spreads easily. But it also reveals two major problems.

First, it oversimplifies reality.
Education is not black and white. Many teachers are exploring how to work with AI. Students also use a variety of learning approaches that go beyond just picking the most efficient tool.

Second, it justifies poor attitudes.
The student's comeback may feel bold, but it blurs important social boundaries. It even risks promoting disrespect as a kind of confidence. These videos often rely on the appeal of taking down outdated systems, but the cost is the subtle message that being ahead gives someone permission to look down on others.

Advertising Shapes More Than Just Products

Marketing does more than sell features. It shapes beliefs and values. If a brand keeps promoting the idea of challenging authority or outsmarting experts, it risks sending a dangerous message. It tells people that if you have the newest tool, you can ignore experience and dismiss others.

If this mindset becomes common, what happens to how young people view learning? How will they interact with teachers or mentors? Technology should help us understand more, not turn us against one another.

As the teacher and student dynamic evolves and AI makes learning more efficient, brands need to emphasize that using technology still requires the basics. Respect, dialogue, and empathy should not be skipped.

Teachers are not symbols of outdated thinking. Many are passionate about learning themselves. AI should be shown as a tool that supports educators, not as a device for making them look foolish.

What Happens After the Buzz Fades

Scenario-based marketing can be powerful. It helps people understand how a product fits into their world. But it matters how that scenario is framed.

Good storytelling in marketing should show the product's strengths without throwing core social values aside. It should not create unnecessary conflict just to capture attention. It should speak to different audiences in thoughtful ways and show that technology is a tool for helping people connect, not a substitute for human relationships.

When a brand builds its image by tearing down educators or turning experts into the villains, what values is it really promoting? And what cultural bonds might it be quietly weakening?

The More Common AI Becomes, the More Humanity Matters

AI marketing does not need to be serious all the time, but it should never sacrifice basic respect just to be edgy.

The student in that video might seem like they won the exchange. But they lost something more important: the ability to understand another person’s perspective. The professor may not have been the best teacher, but they did not deserve to be a target. And as viewers, we should not silently accept these messages.

AI can help us find answers, but it cannot teach us how to treat people. Real intelligence is not just about the content of our answers. It is also about the way we communicate them.

Technology Companies and Their Role in Society

As tech becomes a bigger part of everyday life, companies carry more social responsibility. That includes the way they design products and the way they promote them.

A responsible tech brand needs to ask itself some hard questions. What kind of values are we putting into the world? Are we helping people build better relationships? Are we solving problems or creating new ones?

Meeting legal requirements is not enough. Brands should be guided by a sense of responsibility to the people who use their tools. Promoting speed, access, and learning is great, but it should never come at the cost of encouraging disrespect or division.

The best AI marketing does not just make people feel smarter. It helps them become wiser, more thoughtful, and more respectful of others.

A Better Future for Tech Starts With Better Stories

That controversial video will likely be forgotten. But the questions it raises deserve real reflection from the industry. In a time of rapid AI development, we do not need more marketing built on conflict. We need stories that build understanding, respect, and shared progress.

Technology should bring people closer, not push them apart. The true impact of innovation depends not only on the tools we build, but also on the way we choose to tell their story.