To commemorate the occasion, Hyundai has unveiled Tree Correspondents, a campaign that gives trees a “voice”—quite literally. Powered by artificial intelligence, the initiative transforms environmental data into first-person narratives written from the perspective of trees themselves. Through this blend of technology and advocacy, Hyundai aims to personalize the planetary urgency of deforestation, climate change, and biodiversity loss.
It is, by any measure, an unconventional approach to corporate social responsibility. But it’s also an emblem of how major companies are redefining their roles—not just as manufacturers, but as storytellers and stewards in a rapidly changing world.
From Electric Cars to Global Forests
IONIQ Forest began modestly in 2016 as a symbolic gesture accompanying the debut of the Hyundai IONIQ Electric vehicle. Its mission was straightforward: to plant trees as a visible commitment to a more sustainable future. Initially launched in Korea, the project expanded in scope and geography with the release of the IONIQ 5 in 2021. Today, Hyundai has planted trees in locations ranging from Brazil and the Philippines to Germany and Saudi Arabia.
The global footprint is impressive: one million trees planted in a decade, with reforestation efforts underway in 13 countries, including the United States, Canada, India, Turkey, and the Czech Republic. These forests don’t merely serve as carbon sinks; they also contribute to the restoration of local ecosystems and biodiversity, from tropical canopies to temperate woodlands.
“This isn’t about symbolism alone,” said Sungwon Jee, Senior Vice President and Global Chief Marketing Officer of Hyundai Motor Company. “It’s about action. And the IONIQ Forest is one of the ways we demonstrate our brand vision of ‘Progress for Humanity.’”
Giving Trees a Voice
If IONIQ Forest is Hyundai’s ecological muscle, then Tree Correspondents is its emotional heart. Conceived as a campaign to deepen public engagement with the project, Tree Correspondents uses AI to give a narrative form to hard data.
At the center of this initiative are trees in Brazil, Korea, and the Czech Republic. Fitted with ecological tracking devices, the trees continuously transmit environmental data—temperature, humidity, soil conditions, pollution levels, and more. This raw information is then synthesized with external datasets, including those from The Weather Company, and processed through a bespoke large language model (LLM).
The result is a series of articles “authored” by the trees themselves—digital monologues, so to speak, that express how the forest is coping with rising temperatures, seasonal drought, invasive species, or human activity. The voices are fictional, but the data is real.
“Today, the soil felt heavy with rain,” begins one post by a tree in the Atlantic Forest of Brazil. “But it brought relief. My roots have been thirstier this year than ever before.”
These dispatches can be read on the campaign’s website, TreeCorrespondents.com, and are also being shared in a social media takeover on Hyundai Worldwide’s Threads account. For a limited time, posts will appear from the point of view of the trees themselves—an imaginative attempt to inject empathy into an increasingly data-saturated discourse on climate.
Recognition and Reach
Though officially unveiled this week, Tree Correspondents began quietly on March 21, the International Day of Forests. Since then, the campaign has gained notable traction, both online and within the advertising industry. At the 2025 Cannes Lions International Festival of Creativity, the initiative took home two Gold Lions and one Silver Lion in the Digital Craft category, a testament to its storytelling and technical ingenuity.
The accompanying short film, available on Hyundai’s global YouTube channel, provides behind-the-scenes footage of the campaign’s development—showcasing the IONIQ forests, the AI processing pipeline, and interviews with climate scientists, linguists, and digital artists involved in the project.
A Broader Vision for Corporate Responsibility
Hyundai is not alone in using sustainability to frame its brand identity, but the company’s strategy is distinct in its emphasis on continuity and narrative depth. Rather than relegating reforestation to a line item on a sustainability report, Hyundai has embedded the project within its long-term brand strategy and marketing philosophy.
The approach reflects a growing trend among global corporations to transform environmental responsibility into a form of cultural engagement—tapping into the persuasive power of stories, especially as climate fatigue and political polarization threaten to dull the urgency of the crisis.
“The more people can see themselves—and their futures—in the natural world, the more likely they are to care,” said Dr. Miriam Kwon, an environmental communication specialist not affiliated with Hyundai. “Campaigns like Tree Correspondents may not reverse deforestation, but they can certainly help shift how we talk about it.”
Indeed, Hyundai’s campaign doesn’t aim to replace activism, legislation, or science. Instead, it adds another layer—an accessible, even poetic one—to the conversation. And in doing so, it stakes a claim not only in the automotive marketplace but in the wider cultural debate about sustainability, technology, and the human role in nature.
Looking Beyond the First Million
The campaign’s tagline, “Starting with the First Million,” suggests that Hyundai views its million-tree milestone not as a conclusion but a beginning. Plans are already underway to expand the IONIQ Forest project, with additional forests to be planted in new regions over the next five years.
And if Hyundai has its way, more trees will soon be speaking up. The company is exploring partnerships to deploy AI-driven storytelling tools in other regions, aiming to make ecological data more relatable, especially for younger generations growing up in a digitally mediated world.
“Every tree tells a story,” reads one of the campaign’s taglines. If that’s true, then Hyundai may have found a way to amplify those voices—not with megaphones or slogans, but with code, sensors, and just enough imagination to remind us that the forest is alive, listening, and, now, speaking.