Coca-Cola’s New AI-Generated Y3000 Flavor Tastes Like the Future

The company co-created a new flavor called the Y3000 with the help of AI and released in the USA and Canada.

Creator: Elijah Nouvelage Credit: Bloomberg Copyright: © 2022 Bloomberg Finance LP

ATLANTA, GA – Beverage giant Coca-Cola has been experimenting with new flavors for over a year and a half. Like many businesses, Coca-Cola went to AI to seek solutions to its creative problems as well. The company used AI to generate its new beverage, Y3000, which is said to taste like “the future.”

The new Coca-Cola Y3000 is, like all other variations, mostly the regular taste of Coca-Cola. But, with a taste of the future. Senior director of global strategy at Coca-Cola, Oana Vlad, commented on how the company creates new variations and said:

“The flavor profile is always, we say, 85 to 90% Coke. And then that 10-to-15% twist of something unexpected.”

The new flavor will take its place on the shelves in the USA and Canada starting September 12.

Coca-Cola Y3000

The company started by collecting data from humans to figure out which tastes they associate with the future. Then, after collecting enough data, Coca-Cola turned to AI to figure out profiles and flavor pairings to get a better grasp on the subject.

The company also used AI to create images to reflect a mood that would spark inspiration to use for the packaging. The winning image displays bubbles with pink and blue coloring and a pixeled Coca-Cola logo. The bottles also state that the flavor inside is “Co-Created with AI.”

The new beverage also comes with a QR code on the bottle. Customers can scan the code and reach the Creations site, where they can play around and see what the future might look like in 977 years.

Increasing Sales

The healthy eating waves hit sugar-high beverages like Coca-Cola quite hard in the recent years. Coca-Cola’s CEO James Quincey said one of the reasons behind creating new flavors is to combat the dropping sales.

Quincey said:

“They’re more engaging and more interesting, demonstrably, than a flavor, a Coke with vanilla or something. Testing the boundaries […] that’s about engagement with consumers.”

With the Coca-Cola Y3000, the company also partnered with Riot Games to target gamers, as well as musicians like Rosalia and Marshmello.