A few months ago, I learned about two artificial intelligence (AI) computer programs that were available to consumers. My first thought was that the program would be excellent to create original pictures to go with my column or podcast. I even made one picture however we never used it. A few weeks later, lawsuits began dropping on companies that created these artificial intelligence programs.
The gist is that AI is a computer program that learns how to produce pictures, text, etc., by seeing what humans have done previously, then mimicking it. It’s like learning how to write music by listening to Mozart. From that time on, everything you create has its roots based upon the Mozart music from which you learned. The whole thing made me feel a little funny. I was happy we had never used the picture as some retrospect made the whole process feel like theft.
A CNC machine is a tool that is moved mechanically to cut shapes based on a pre-programmed pattern controlled by a computer. Artificial Intelligence is kind of like a CNC machine in that it creates something except it goes beyond the control of a human and learns to create its own end product. The knowledge to create that product is taken from decades of human creativity, without paying those humans, or even asking permission.
I think AI could be a worthwhile tool. It could compile information from vetted sources and arrange it in a spreadsheet so a human could then create a report. It could find verifiable sources of information which would be used, and cited, in a news story. It should always be used as a tool by a human, it should never be untethered.
What I don’t understand is why there are those who would sacrifice their own creativity to a machine. The world is full of things that create sadness however it’s also full of creative inspiration.
Creativity is the music in our souls after spending time in tonedeaf, uninspired occupations.
It’s the same as always, follow the money. Creative people who write, take pictures or create are paid a wage. An artificial intelligence program has initial cost and perhaps a maintenance fee however it is less expensive that an even low-paid human. Those who can re-sell human creativity may enjoy the decreased costs associated with AI but it comes as a detriment to humanity as we no longer value creativity.
If we allow Artificial Intelligence to remove humanity from its place in the creative process it will provide temporary economic benefits to a few people. However it will cause a permanent loss to humanity of something very human. People will still be creative but you’ll never read or listen to their efforts as the cost of human creativity will be more than whatever is created by AI. Without demand, this great resource will dwindle. It is our responsibility to nurture human creativity then hand it off to the next generation, not sell it off for temporary monetary gain.
Do you want the poems, pictures and songs you enjoy to come from the sincere heart of a human or the cold code of a computer? I want my emotions stirred by the sympathetic mind of a human and not the manipulation of a computer, trying to mimic sincerity. Creativity is part of the joy of being human, it should stay human.
