But, doesn’t AI lack something? 👾
I’ve mentioned AI a few weeks ago. It’s something that comes up a lot in the last couple of years and there’s a lot of fear around it, especially from the creative industries. Opinions seem to fall under two categories; it’s either consider a tool or a potential threat.
“The proliferation of creative AI tools has ushered in urgent discussions over ethics, regulation and guardrails. The potential benefits of generative AI – such as augmented creativity and productivity gains – being weighed against the pitfalls, such as data privacy, copyright infringement and inaccuracy.”
World Economic Forum
What everyone agrees on, is that AI is here and it’s not going anywhere. It doesn’t matter if we agree or disagree with its conduct, if we are excited about it or dreading it, it’s quickly becoming a part of our lives, both personally and professionally.
🤖 Understanding AI (in context)
We are still in the early ages of Artificial Intelligence. Trying to predict the future outlook and where it might be headed won’t change anything. We already know that we’ll keep moving forward, keep evolving technology, so unless we decide to halt all human progress, it seems like AI is here to stay.
“Generative AI could be the biggest change in the cost structure of information production since the creation of the printing press in 1439.”
Harvard Business Review
AI adapts through progressive learning algorithms that let data do the programming. It works by finding structures and regularities in the data it’s fed. Just as an algorithm can teach itself to generate images, it can teach itself what product to recommend next online (something that’s been around for a while and no one seems to have any problem with). That is to say, it relies heavily on the initial data input–at least at the moment–and lacks any real innovative output. To put it simply, AI generated outcomes will always look like something that’s already out there. At least at the moment, I can’t see AI being a thread to creativity. From the research I’ve read through so far, the one thing the algorithm seems to struggle with is–in fact–creative and innovative thinking. In some industries, it’s proven a potential for predicting human behaviour (or imitating it somewhat) but not to a state in which the algorithm is able to generate anything original. Yes, it can create some incredible, intricate and beautiful–or scary at times–outcomes, but I have yet to see any real innovation come out of any AI tool.
☠️ The fear of becoming obsolete
Love them or hate them, AI tools make our lives easier. I remember when I started in the industry and people were afraid of Photoshop making the role redundant. It was a valid fear as we’ve seen the last few years. The whole of Adobe Suite took over and is now being taken over by other tools, like Figma, open source 3D programmes and new platforms. There’s always something new. There’s always something to learn. There’s always change.
We don’t become obsolete by change. We become obsolete by refusing to accept, learn from and adapt to it. Change is inevitable. Instead of fear, I invite us to look at it with positivity. Let’s focus on the good rather than the potential bad. Why would we not want our lives to be easier? I personally love the new AI features. I’ve used a few and they’ve been massively helpful at cutting down my time on tedious tasks when used wisely. The new Photoshop AI features have significantly helped our team cut down on time spent doing mundane tasks and allowed them to focus more on the creative asks of a brief.
💖 So doesn’t AI lack something?
Simplification. Character. Innovation. These are the common themes I found AI to lack. I’ve used AI tools for copy and visuals on multiple occasions. None of them have the capability to simplify the way a human can. None of them have a unique sense of character. Yes, they can be trained to imitate a certain style or personality, but their outputs are limited.
If AI was human–big if here–it would only work with the left side of its brain. It simply lacks–at this moment and time–the right side. And that’s a major setback. That is why AI will never be able to replace creatives. It needs us to train it, to use it, to work with it. And at the end, we need to be the ones to put things together, connect the dots and do the innovative idea work. Because for once, I can safely say that the one thing that makes us flawed, is also the one thing that makes us irreplaceable. We are human. We make mistakes. We change. We feel. We are unpredictable. And that’s our superpower. Because the algorithm won’t be able to do that. It is build with logic, and logic is flawed in its own way, because it lacks emotion.
👉 My take on things
It’s our ability to simplify, to diversify, to think differently that make us unique. Unless we train different versions of AI and keep them separate from each other, the tools will always arrive at similar conclusions, because they generate using a collective take on any given situation. It makes their outputs common, correlative, uniform. Creatives’ advantage is their ability to think so differently from each other. That’s the one muscle we have to train as the world changes, our ability to not conform, to be unique, to stay individual.
That’s my take from what I’ve experienced so far. What’s yours?
AI tools I’m loving right now
🚀 Google Labs launched some very exciting tools that can come in handy for a number of projects.
🔮 If you are interested in 3D, Spline offers a subscription platform that allows you to generate 3D elements (and potentially make them interactive).
🎉 And last, but not least, FigJam AI is a life saver on automating tedious tasks and organising ideas.
I think there's another category to fall in, "meh" haha! I mean, my Sonos AI can barely change radio station and all Siri seems capable of is setting timers. I know I've taken it into personal assistant territory but the "creative" AI tools all feel the same, nowhere near ready and waaaaaay overhyped. I'm not afraid of them (yet), I'll just get excited when they're actually ready.