Maserati explores emotion and AI in new campaign

Luxury automotove brand Maserati is exploring the boundary between intelligence and emotion in a striking new campaign, Do AIs Dream of Driving?, created by independent creative agency DUDE and produced by innovation studio FM. The AI-generated film celebrates the human experience at the heart of Maserati’s engineering, showing that while intelligence can be artificial, emotion cannot.

The campaign launches globally today across Maserati’s social channels, including Instagram, Facebook and YouTube. At its core is a story about understanding — or rather, the limits of understanding — in an age defined by technology.

AI tells the story of Maserati’s engine with human emotion

The 60-second film takes viewers into a futuristic setting where a man named Leonardo describes Maserati’s Nettuno engine in flawless technical detail. Designed and built entirely in Modena, Italy, the 630-horsepower engine is a masterpiece of innovation — yet Leonardo, revealed to be an advanced AI, expresses frustration. Despite his perfect knowledge, he will never feel what it’s like to drive a Maserati — the power, sound, and sensory exhilaration that define the brand.

As the film alternates between glitching AI visuals and dynamic road footage, the message becomes clear: true understanding comes not from data, but from experience.

A creative experiment in human–AI collaboration

Artificial intelligence played a central role in the project’s concept and production, not as a shortcut but as a storytelling tool. FM integrated AI into post-production to create a hyperreal visual style, intentionally preserving small distortions that signal the presence of artificial creation.

The protagonist was cast traditionally and compensated for both their likeness and their AI-generated digital twin. The setting and styling were also created through collaborative visual research between the agency and the brand. All stages — from casting and direction to post-production — were completed by human professionals under an ethical protocol developed by FM to ensure transparency, protect rights, and respect creative work.

AI enhancing creativity, not replacing it

Chiara Monticelli, Creative Director, DUDE Milan: “Thanks to Maserati and Studio FM, we had the opportunity to experiment with an entirely new video production process, fully driven by AI-generated creation. This project represented an important step forward for us in the evolution of creative processes — where artificial intelligence supports and enhances human creativity without replacing it.”

Through Do AIs Dream of Driving?, Maserati positions itself at the intersection of performance and philosophy, using technology to underline a deeply human truth: machines may process information, but only people can feel the thrill of the drive.

www.maserati.com

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