Pedigree's AI adoption platform launches with mystery campaign in São Paulo
Pedigree revealed itself as the brand behind a cryptic artificial intelligence service after weeks of teaser billboards across São Paulo. The platform, called melhoramigo.ia, connects people with dogs available for adoption at local animal shelters.
The campaign ran in two phases. First, stark black-and-white advertisements appeared at major transit hubs and on busy avenues without identifying the brand, promising an AI "friend" to users. The mystery drew attention on social media, amplified when Brazilian influencer Felca questioned whether AI could genuinely replace human friendship.
The second phase revealed Pedigree's involvement and the actual purpose: the platform uses a compatibility test to match potential adopters with available dogs based on personality and lifestyle questions. The tool already lists over 200 dogs through a partnership with Instituto AMPARA Animal.
How creatives can learn from the execution
AlmapBBDO's approach offers a lesson in constraint-driven creativity. The agency used AI's limitations as the campaign's central tension-deliberately contrasting artificial friendship with genuine human-animal bonds. Rather than celebrating AI's capabilities, the work critiqued them.
The creative directors deliberately borrowed the visual language of major tech companies to signal what the campaign was questioning. This required understanding the visual codes of the industry well enough to subvert them.
For creatives developing AI-driven campaigns, the strategy suggests a framework: ask what AI cannot do, then use that gap as your creative hook. AI Design Courses and Generative Art training often focus on what tools enable. This campaign inverted that premise.
The research backing the message
Pedigree cited data from the Waltham Petcare Science Institute showing 86% of people report pets improve their mental health, 69% say pets reduce stress and anxiety, and 63% consider them true friends. These figures gave the campaign factual ground beyond emotional appeal.
The brand has supported adoption through its "Adotar é Tudo de Bom" program for 17 years, which has helped over 88,000 animals find homes. The AI platform extends existing infrastructure rather than replacing it.
Ricardo Marinho, marketing manager for Pedigree at Mars Pet Nutrition Brasil, said the campaign addressed a cultural moment: "In a world that puts a premium on well-being and authentic relationships, we used AI to lend even more visibility to a cause we've been supporting for 17 years."
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