‘Go touch grass’: Polaroid’s ‘pro-human’ ad campaign calls for an analog summer – and Gen Z may be ready to listen

As Polaroid wrote on Instagram, “Summer is better lived, not streamed. Go outside. Go off grid. Go touch grass.”

Officially, this campaign is about promoting the Polaroid Go Generation 3 instant analog camera, but the meme-friendly messages take a jab at the obsession with AI.

‘Jump in some water’

For instance, Polaroid announced it strategically placed a billboard on Brooklyn’s Coney Island this year that tells people to “Go jump in some water before the data centers drink it all up.”

And this isn’t the first, or even the most brazen, billboard the company has used to target AI companies. Back in 2025, Polaroid announced its “The Camera for an Analog Life” campaign, which features similar handwritten messages that evoke the magic of pre-digital life.

Some of these ads — which included lines such as “Real stories, not stories on Reels” and “No one on their deathbed ever said, ‘I wish I’d spent more time on my phone’” — were provocatively placed outside of Apple Stores and Google headquarters in cities including London and New York.

Polaroid’s Creative Director Patricia Varella noted in a press release that, “For Polaroid, the simple act of existing is already an act of rebellion.” Even though Varella said that doesn’t mean Polaroid is “anti-digital,” she explained that, “We’re deeply pro-human, and know what humanity gives us. And we know what we stand to lose if we don’t protect it. That’s a fight worth fighting.”

Moneywise reached out to Polaroid for additional comment, but did not hear back by publication time.

Longing for an AI-free, analog world

It’s clear that Polaroid’s ads are hitting a nerve with a lot of people. For instance, Polaroid’s post, “Go jump in some water before the data centers drink it all up,” has already racked up over 100K likes on Instagram, along with 800-plus comments including, “Didn’t know Polaroid could give me an existential crisis about our world but here we are.”

This may speak to the recent anxiety over AI.

Pew Research showed most Americans are at least ambivalent about the new agentic age. In fact, 50% of Americans say they’re more worried than excited about AI’s omnipresence in day-to-day life. Only 10% of respondents said they were more optimistic about AI, while 38% were conflicted.

Pew researchers also pointed out that roughly 50% of American survey participants think AI will worsen the ability to form rich relationships and engage in creative thinking.

All that pessimism about AI’s supposed “progress” helps explain the recent passion for analog products, especially among digital-native Gen Z.​

Vinyl records are a prime example of this recent rage for all things analog, with Forbes reporting sales crossed $1 billion in 2025.

Polaroid didn’t hide that it’s trying to tap into demand among younger demographics through its marketing. Varella said in the release that her team asked themselves, “How do you make instant cameras appealing to Gen Z?” when developing this campaign.​

More companies target an AI-exhausted consumer

Although Polaroid’s campaign is a brash response to Big Tech, it isn’t the only company tapping into AI angst.