It seems we’re going to be living with artificial intelligence for quite some time. If that’s the case, let’s make sure it doesn’t start to take over and diminish human intuition.
As a writer, I’m seeing what AI is doing to the field.
In all honesty, it can help to write a blog post or even a book quite a bit faster than usual.
However, there is no way to ‘program’ AI to innovate or get creative. I just don’t believe it’s possible.
So, with that said. How do we OWN this beast and make it work for US?
Specifically, how can AI enhance creativity without losing human intuition?
The Pros:
AI can be used as a tool to generate ideas, concepts, and prompts which can spark human imagination and intuition. These of course, are pulled from the billions of pieces of data that are collected from the internet daily.
The Cons:
AI and the proponents thereof will say that by being able to analyze vast amounts of data, AI can make unexpected connections that humans may not have considered. Which in turn actually enhances creative thinking and human intuition.
I call BS.
Something AI is good for is Augmenting Creative Workflows
The Pros:
AI can automate repetitive or time-consuming tasks, freeing up human creators to focus on the more intuitive and expressive aspects of their craft.
This includes:
- Use AI to generate initial drafts or layouts, which creators can then refine using their own human intuition.
- Have AI analyze data and provide insights to inform creative decisions. Of course, the final judgment calls are left to human intuition.
- Leverage AI to customize content for specific audiences. AI pulls on vast amounts of data from the masses. It can help the individual by offering stats on the whole.
The Cons:
The danger is that people will get too comfortable and a bit lazy. Trusting that AI will generate facts 100% of the time is putting your work at risk. It has been proven time and time again that AI will get facts wrong. That’s mostly because humans make mistakes and sometimes lie. AI can’t tell the difference between the truth and a lie. This is why human intuition must always be at the forefront.
AI as Collaborator
AI can be good for facilitating cross-disciplinary collaboration. It can do this by bridging different creative domains. So, what does that mean?
An example of The Pros:
- AI can generate models with a multitude of artistic styles. This hybrid outputs can inspire human creators to explore new directions
- Human creators from different fields can collaborate by inputting a variety of ideas in the AI generator. Of course, AI’s ability to synthesize diverse inputs still relies (heavily) on human intuition to guide the creative vision.
The Cons
I’ve actually tried this with several artistic styles. You can too. There are many free AI tools now that will generate an image based on your input. These include suggesting the styles of the masters. Such as Van Gogh, Picasso, Pollock, etc.
So when I tried this, almost everything AI generated looked like a big mess. Very few looked like anything interesting or even attractive.
Ultimately, We Are In Charge of This Beast
We can never relax with AI. We can never know what a piece of software or machinery is going to result in. Especially, when it’s pulling from a pool that we know (in 2024) is filled with a good mix of corruption.
Human intuition and decision-making must always lead. By using AI as a complementary tool rather than a replacement, creators can leverage its capabilities to enhance their work.
Just as the internet, computers and document software has made the life of a writer easier, it hasn’t replaced the imagination writers need to write a great story.
As long as we remember that AI is a beast we must always keep on a leash, we can OWN it instead of being consumed by it.
