One year ago, AT&T Business launched the “Wake Up with CrAIg” ad campaign, built to shine a light on the real journey of small business owners and celebrate what it takes to build something from the ground up. The campaign also continued the momentum of our 2024 campaign with Rainn Wilson, which set the stage for what came next.
The campaign follows Craig Robinson and a cast of familiar faces, including Creed Bratton, Angela Kinsey, Oscar Nuñez, and Ellie Kemper, as they turn an idea into something real. What starts as a simple concept, an AI alarm clock designed to motivate small business owners, quickly evolves into a growing business. Viewers watch the business take shape over the course of the campaign as doors open, the company expands, and everyday challenges begin to surface.
While “Wake Up with CrAIg” is a fictional story, the pressure, decisions, and momentum behind it are not. At its core, the story mirrors what so many small business owners experience daily, while showing how staying connected is essential to running and growing a business.
A Year of Growth
To mark the campaign’s one-year milestone, we released a long-form video of “Wake Up with CrAIg” that captures a year in the life of the small business team through the trials and tribulations with a hint of humor along the way. In the latest release, “The Campaign: The Movie,” Craig’s business journey inspires Leslie David Baker, whose own business needs a wake up from CrAIg to help get things back on track. You’ll see familiar scenes from the campaign and never-before-seen footage.
“Wake Up with CrAIg” began in summer 2025 with a “leaked video” of Craig announcing that he was stepping away from comedy. From there, the full campaign unfolded, with each chapter focused on a different small business challenge and the role connectivity plays in helping them move forward:
- Chapter 2: Ease highlighted the business need for fast internet like AT&T Business Internet and how simple it is to get AT&T support when you need it.
- Chapter 3: Security focused on the importance of proactively taking steps to secure your business and customers with solutions like AT&T Dynamic Defense®1.
- Chapter 4: Reliability explored mobility and resilience, from free in-flight Wi-Fi on American Airlines, sponsored by AT&T2, to the value of AT&T Business Fiber with 5G backup3, which helps keep businesses connected during disruptions. Our next spot will feature Ellie in her role as chief positivity officer and how AT&T Business Mobility helps businesses stay connected and reach customers.
You’ll continue to see the campaign’s spots air across TV, social, digital channels, and retail.
Small Biz on the Big Screen: Putting Small Business Customers Center Stage
“Wake Up with CrAIg” started as a campaign and grew into a cultural movement. From the beginning, we wanted to put small business owners at the center of this work. Their experiences shaped the campaign, and that authenticity is an integral part of why it resonated.
As we approached this one-year milestone, we stayed true to the spirit of the campaign: putting small business owners at the center. And we did just that in Los Angeles and during the Tribeca Festival in New York City, where we premiered “The Campaign: The Movie” and created space for business owners to connect over shared experiences and real challenges. We were also joined at the Los Angeles event by our AT&T Small Business Contest winners, Aneesa Getaneh, founder of Daisy Medical Institute, and Jilea and Jamie Hemmings, co-founders of Nourish + Bloom Market. There is no single playbook for running a business, but there is value in hearing how others are navigating it.
Connecting Changes Everything
Every morning, small business owners wake up to new challenges and new opportunities. AT&T Business is proud to support them with solutions designed for the realities of running a business today.
With plenty of plans, solutions, and options to bundle for value, AT&T Business has unique solutions tailored to your unique needs. From lightning-fast AT&T Business Fiber with 5G Backup, to built-in security solutions like AT&T Dynamic Defense®, and reliable 5G wireless networks with AT&T Business Mobility, we provide the connectivity small businesses need to keep moving forward. And with the AT&T Guarantee®, we’re giving small business customers even more confidence with connectivity they depend on, the deals they want, and the prompt, friendly service they deserve, Guaranteed, or we make it right.4
Connecting changes everything – with the right connectivity partner, small businesses can wake up ready for whatever comes next.
Learn more about "Wake Up with CrAIg" and AT&T Business
