Audi's Andy Lau ad copied a Douyin poet's Xiaoman lines word-for-word

On May 21, 2022 — the day of Xiaoman (Grain Buds), a traditional Chinese solar term — Audi released a short film starring Hong Kong actor Andy Lau. The film reflected on the philosophy of Xiaoman: 'If there is Minor Heat there must be Major Heat; if there is Minor Cold there must be Major Cold. But Xiaoman has no Daman, because Daman does not conform to our ancients' wisdom.' The ad was widely praised for its cultural depth.

Hours later, Douyin influencer '北大满哥' (Bei Da Man Ge) posted a side-by-side comparison. The ad's script was lifted verbatim from a video he had posted in 2018. The poem, the examples, the philosophical framing — all matched. M&C Saatchi, Audi's creative agency, had taken a content creator's original work and presented it as original copy for a celebrity-starring luxury car ad.

On the morning of May 22, FAW-Audi issued a public apology and pulled the ad from all platforms. The brand stated that the agency was responsible for the oversight and acknowledged the review process had failed. Andy Lau responded that he felt '100% regretful.' The irony was structural: an ad about the ancient wisdom of knowing when enough is enough was itself caught trying to take more than enough.