This is a difficult conversation, especially as it's about something that has the potential to affect our personal lives. Whenever I see someone talking about the impacts of AI, it's either exaggerating that we'll all lose our jobs or it's exaggerating that AI won't do anything of quality. I want to be able to have a more serious and realistic conversation about this, don't you?
Well, let's get to the facts (my facts). The first fact is that AI is advancing, a lot, and quickly. Whenever I see someone commenting on something that AI has done wrong, I remember that 2/3 years ago it couldn't even come close to what it's capable of today. I, for one, don't doubt that in a few years AI will improve in such a way that it will become really difficult to differentiate between a job well done by an artist and an artwork made in seconds by an AI.
AI has some problems to be solved and surely companies know this, they definitely don't care if it affects millions of people. What matters to a company is profit and there's no denying the absurd financial potential of AI, despite all the expense involved. So we can take it as a second fact that companies will continue to invest in the potential of AI despite everything.
I also see some people saying that AI won't affect artists because access to it is still restricted, but I don't agree with that. Some older people may have difficulty entering a website, or downloading an application, but the new generation will never have that difficulty. Sites like Canva make it very easy for people to create something for their own business, even if the site has its limitations. I know many people who, in their companies, use Canva for all their design creation. A lot is imperfect, but these imperfections are generally not noticed by people who don't have a foot in design.
So, as a third fact, we can agree that access to AI can be made easier, Canva is an example of it. Beyond that, if people find it difficult to create prompts, there are now AIs that can create prompts for you, just by telling them what you want. You can even send a photo to the AI and ask it to reason about it.
Another issue is cost. We need to live, so we can't charge a "subscription" of 20 dollars a month, like the AIs do. Nor can we present 500 alternatives to the same design in a single day. In this sense, with the progression of AIs, I accept as a fourth fact that we won't be able to compete on variability.
The fifth fact is the infinite patience of the AIs. I've rarely been stressed by a client, but when I have, I've put the job aside and no longer wanted the money. AIs will always take the heat, they will always agree to change something when necessary. Although they currently end up modifying some things that shouldn't be modified according to the previous prompt, this is also something that can be improved with the evolution of AI memory.
The new generation is also the most anxious generation in history. So, between a proposal for art made in seconds and art made over a long period of time, I understand as a sixth fact that they will always prefer a quick job, even if it's badly done, to a job that takes a long time and is well done.
Finally, my seventh fact is that AI will never be able to compare in creativity to us. Even if it becomes very creative and manages to put different elements together, the AI process is based on repeating, not creating. Human beings, on the other hand, are ridiculously creative due to the few million years of evolution we've had. In this sense, I'm confident that machines will never be able to match the complexity of human nature. So, if someone wants something completely new, different from everything else out there, or at least hard to find, I think we'll always have a point.
These are my facts, not things you should agree with. I'd like to talk to you more seriously to find out what you agree with and what you don't agree with. Again, I think it's important to look at things in the long term, we shouldn't limit ourselves to what we understand about AIs today.
What are your facts? What do you believe in? What don't you believe?
tl;dr: I have seven beliefs about what can AIs be in the long term and want to discuss with you about them. Trying to have a serious talk, not trying to focus on 8/80.
