JOLLIBEE Foods Corp. has put on hold the raffle draw of its Burger Blowout promo after online users questioned the legitimacy of some winners, citing their unusual, foreign-sounding names.
In an advisory, the fast-food giant said it was “currently reviewing the matter” and coordinating with the Department of Trade and Industry (DTI).
“We acknowledge the recent concern regarding the week 3 raffle draw of our Burger Blowout promo. We are currently reviewing the matter and are working closely with the Department of Trade and Industry,” Jollibee said.
“We will be temporarily postponing succeeding raffle draws. Please be assured that this will not affect previously declared legitimate winners, and we remain committed to ensuring that only valid entries are considered for raffle draws,” it added.
The company issued the statement after netizens noticed that several raffle winners had names they suspected were artificial intelligence (AI)-generated, including “Blaise Wolf,” “Bonita Gulgowski,” “Albert Goldner,” “Adolfo Stehr,” “Anastasia Monahan,” and “Berneice Witting.”
“AI generated winners hahaha,” one netizen quipped, while another asked, “Kindly explain why the surnames of most of your winners are of that non-Filipino ancestry.”
Some also joked that the promo might have been “worldwide” because of the distinctly foreign surnames.
