As if you needed another excuse to visit the new museum
Once upon a very long time ago, a Tyrannosaurus rex ruled the Earth. Fast forward 67 million years and he’s back, not stomping through forests, but strutting onto social feeds.
To celebrate the opening of Natural History Museum Abu Dhabi, Experience Abu Dhabi has resurrected one of the world’s most famous fossils in a way no one saw coming.
Say hello to STAN, the legendary T. rex who has officially evolved into the world’s first “AI-ncient influencer.” Yes, your feed just went prehistoric.
Brought to life by Experience Abu Dhabi alongside Ogilvy Paris’ AI.Lab and Memac Ogilvy UAE, STAN has traded extinction for expression, emerging as a fully fledged AI-powered social creator.
Powered by Google’s Veo 3.1 technology, this once-silent skeleton now talks, jokes, reacts and riffs on life, science and…being 67 million years late to TikTok.
With a sharp sense of humour, expressive personality and a voice that feels more dino-next-door than distant museum exhibit, STAN doesn’t just teach natural history, he lives it.
One moment he’s poking fun at his tiny arms, the next he’s dropping bite-sized science facts or leaning into dinosaur nostalgia that long-time fans can’t resist.
Rather than forcing facts, the campaign leans into how people already talk about dinosaurs online.
Social listening helped shape STAN’s character, tapping into memes, trending formats and the natural curiosity that keeps dinosaur fandom roaring across TikTok.
The result is content that feels effortless, entertaining and surprisingly informative.
The first chapter of The AI-ncient Influencer unfolded as a series of short-form episodes on Natural History Museum Abu Dhabi’s social channels, with teaser appearances on Visit Abu Dhabi’s pages.
Timed around the museum’s recent opening, STAN’s debut quickly proved that even a fossil can break the algorithm.
And break it he did. Since launch, STAN has racked up 50 million video views and 83.8K engagements, with top-performing posts alone clocking more than 23 million views.
Audience sentiment has stayed overwhelmingly positive, showing that science, when served with humour and heart, still has mass appeal.
More episodes are on the way as STAN continues his unlikely second life, guiding audiences from their screens to the museum halls where his real-life bones await.
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