Is it possible for AI to be creative?

Exploring creative skills of generative AI

Author

Kate Koidan
March 08, 2023

In this newsletter, read about:

  • 🕵️‍♀️ Generative AI & Creativity

  • đź—ž What’s Trending in AI Art?

  • 🏪 Generative AI Startup of the Week: Runway

  • 🎨 Artist of the Week: Scott Eaton

  • đź–Ľ AI-Assisted Artwork of the Week: Bob

  • 🤓 How to Get Started with Generative AI?

🕵️‍♀️ Generative AI & Creativity

I’ve recently asked ChatGPT, whether generative AI can be creative. Here’s the answer:

As a language model AI developed by OpenAI, I can perform certain tasks that require some level of creativity, such as generating text, music, or even images. However, it is important to note that the creativity shown by AI systems is limited by the data and algorithms that they were trained on.

AI can generate new and unique outputs, but it is not capable of truly experiencing emotions, imagination, or original thought in the same way that humans do. It is still guided by the rules and patterns it has learned from the data it was trained on.

Therefore, while AI can certainly produce outputs that appear to be creative, it cannot be considered truly creative in the sense that humans understand the concept.

ChatGPT

Well, great! But isn’t it about the same for human creativity? Aren’t people also guided in their creativity by the rules and patterns they have seen and experienced?

Encyclopedia Britannica defines creativity as “the ability to make or otherwise bring into existence something new, whether a new solution to a problem, a new method or device, or a new artistic object or form.”

If we follow this definition, generative AI, like DALL-E 2 or Midjourney, seems pretty much creative. Obviously, these tools are trained on human-generated content (artworks, photographs, texts, music, etc.), but they bring into existence new objects and new forms.

While some opponents of this technology refer to it as “a 21st-century collage tool”, it’s worth noting that collage is also an art form. Nobody seems to question the originality of Andy Warhol’s collages. Was he creative when he produced 50 images of Marilyn Monroe from a single publicity photograph from the film Niagara? Definitely.

Though, I wouldn’t compare DALL-E 2 and Andy Warhol directly. My point is that generative AI can be a creative tool, but still, it’s just a tool. It’s not a subject of creativity. We still need a human in the loop, even if this human just types a text prompt. After all, the best photographs of this world just push the button.

🗞 What’s Trending in AI Art?

  • 10 leading tech companies, including OpenAI, Adobe, and TikTok, launched a new guidance framework on how to responsibly develop, create, and share synthetic media.

  • ControlNet gives you more control over Stable Diffusions creativity (The Decoder)

  • Is A.I. art stealing from artists? (New Yorker)

  • AI is no threat to traditional artists. But it is thrilling. (The Washington Post)

🏪 Generative AI Startup of the Week

Runway offers a content creation suite with 30+ AI Magic Tools, real-time video editing, collaboration, and more. You can try Runway for free and experiments with ideating, generating, and editing content with all the power of generative AI.

🎨 Artist of the Week

Hyperbolic Composition I by Scott Eaton

Scott Eaton is an artist, designer, photographer, and creative technologist residing in London, UK. His work pushes the boundaries of figurative representation combining contemporary digital tools – machine learning (AI), data, computer graphics, and animation – with traditional techniques of art making. Scott got his masters degree from the MIT Media Lab, studied academic drawing and sculpture in Florence, Italy, and received an MA in contemporary art from the Royal College of Art, London.

đź–Ľ AI-Assisted Artwork of the Week

Ladies and gentlemen, feast your eyes on the one and only Bob - the coolest cat in town! This sphynx feline is not your ordinary pet, oh no. Bob is dressed to impress, with a colorful T-shirt that screams "I'm here to party!" His arms are covered in tattoos that would make even the toughest biker cat jealous, and his mohawk is styled in a way that would make David Bowie proud.

But wait, there's more! Bob isn't just a fashion icon, he's also a master artist. Just look at him, holding that brush like it's an extension of his cool cat persona. He's got a mischievous twinkle in his expressive green eyes that says, "I'm about to create something amazing, folks."

So come on, folks, don't be shy - come and meet Bob, the sphynx cat that's taking the art world by storm. He's not just a pretty face (and body), he's a true artist with a passion for expression and a flair for the dramatic. Who says cats can't be cool? Bob's here to prove them all wrong.

Disclosures: The painting is based on sketches created with the help of Midjourney, and the text description was generated with ChatGPT.

🤓 How to Get Started with AI Art?

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