Drivers cruising down Sunset Boulevard may find themselves momentarily disoriented next week, and that’s exactly the point. Equinox has rolled out a striking new billboard campaign designed to stop traffic and spark conversation by confronting the growing blur between reality and artificial imagery.
The campaign features a series of side-by-side visuals. On one side are deliberately jarring, AI-distorted images, including a surreal depiction of former Canadian Prime Minister Justin Trudeau wrapped around a stripper pole and a visual riff on the viral deepfake of Pope Francis in a designer puffer jacket.
On the opposite side are unmistakably real figures: sweat-soaked, intimidatingly fit bodies in workout gear. Anchoring every execution is the line, “Question Everything but Yourself,” followed by Equinox’s long-standing brand mantra, “It’s Not Fitness. It’s Life.”
The work arrives amid growing public backlash toward AI-generated imagery in advertising. Like recent campaigns from Heineken, Polaroid, and Cadbury, Equinox is tapping into a cultural moment defined by skepticism toward synthetic perfection and algorithm-driven aesthetics. In recent months, AI-created ads from major brands, including Coca-Cola and McDonald’s, have faced criticism, while misleading AI-driven social posts and subway ads have been pulled after public outcry.
But according to Angry Gods founder Krish Menon, whose agency partnered with Equinox on the campaign, this isn’t an anti-technology statement. “This isn’t man versus AI at all, we use AI,” Menon said. “It’s about culture losing its grip on what’s real, and fitness as one of the last places of truth. You can fake looking fit, but not being fit.”
Menon argues the timing is crucial. With AI imagery improving rapidly and physical shortcuts like weight-loss drugs reshaping body perception, the campaign aims to underline a simple distinction: appearance versus experience. “You can do a lot in photos, but you won’t feel better,” he noted. “That’s something you still have to earn.”
The campaign also reflects Equinox’s broader brand posture under new leadership. Bindu Shah, who joined Equinox last year as chief marketing and chief digital officer after departing Tory Burch, said provocation has always been part of the company’s DNA. “I wanted to make sure Equinox is responding to culture,” Shah said. “This acknowledges how noisy and fabricated things are, but it lands on something you can trust: yourself.”
Shah also recognizes that bold creative choices invite debate, particularly in a climate already sensitive to AI and manipulation. Still, she views the risk as worthwhile. “We know there is always risk,” she said. “What I love is that it’s ultimately optimistic.”
In an era saturated with filtered bodies, fabricated moments, and synthetic identity, Equinox is betting that authenticity, discipline, and lived experience still cut through. And if the billboards momentarily distract drivers along the way, that disruption may be exactly the message.
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