Narwhal Labs ad pulled from Bristol Airport over sexism complaints
An advertising campaign for AI company Narwhal Labs has been removed from Bristol Airport after the Advertising Standards Agency received multiple complaints accusing the ads of misogyny and sexist stereotyping.
The billboard promoted DeepBlue OS, an AI agent that handles communications across voice, SMS, email and WhatsApp. The female version read: "She outworks everyone. And she'll never ask for a raise. Meet your new AI employee. Always on, never sick and no HR required."
The male version took a different approach: "Hello, is it leads your looking for? He'll find them, call them and follow up. While you sleep."
The disparity sparked immediate backlash
The contrast between the two versions drew criticism for suggesting that taking time off work is primarily a female concern. Rebecca Horne, head of communications at Pregnant Then Screwed, called the campaign "misogyny with a marketing budget" and said it "pushes the toxic idea that the ideal worker is a woman who is endlessly available, compliant, unpaid and without needs."
Comments on Narwhal Labs' LinkedIn post reflected widespread confusion. One user asked: "Who passed this as a relevant campaign in 2026?" Another described it as "a serious misstep on so many levels."
Anti-AI campaign group Pull The Plug created satirical versions of the ads, with taglines including "Want to talk to a human at work? That's so 2022."
Company response blamed interpretation
Narwhal Labs issued a statement saying: "We understand the strength of feeling our campaign has generated. It was never our intention for the billboards to be perceived as misogynistic or racist, and we take that concern seriously."
The company argued the campaign depicted "people from a wide range of demographics" and framed the debate as "humans versus machines" rather than targeting any specific group.
For creatives navigating AI's role in the workplace, this episode illustrates how messaging around AI tools can expose - or amplify - existing workplace assumptions. Understanding AI for Creatives includes recognizing how these technologies are being positioned in the market.
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