Creativity has always set humans apart from our animal counterparts. But as artificial intelligence and machine learning evolves, it's proving as capable -- if not more imaginative -- than we ever could have been.
The World Economic Forum predicted 85 million jobs would be replaced by automation by 2025. While most people assume this means the death of blue-collar jobs, it may include jobs that involve more critical thinking and imagination, like art and advertising.
That’s not to say artificial intelligence can create something from scratch -- yet. One popular viral app I tried -- Lensa -- uses technology from a free deep learning platform called Stable Diffusion. It’s known for allowing people to input text, and using artificial intelligence, it creates a bespoke image. However, Stable Diffusion was trained on 2.3 billion images on the internet, which means many of Lensa’s works have been “inspired” by existing creations. (And it’s raising debates about whether it’s okay to train artificial intelligence with art without the express permission of artists.)
If you’re curious about how the apps work, I tried them out for you.
The World Economic Forum predicted 85 million jobs would be replaced by automation by 2025. While most people assume this means the death of blue-collar jobs, it may include jobs that involve more critical thinking and imagination, like art and advertising.
That’s not to say artificial intelligence can create something from scratch -- yet. One popular viral app I tried -- Lensa -- uses technology from a free deep learning platform called Stable Diffusion. It’s known for allowing people to input text, and using artificial intelligence, it creates a bespoke image. However, Stable Diffusion was trained on 2.3 billion images on the internet, which means many of Lensa’s works have been “inspired” by existing creations. (And it’s raising debates about whether it’s okay to train artificial intelligence with art without the express permission of artists.)
If you’re curious about how the apps work, I tried them out for you.
Courtesy of Michelle Castillo
Chat GPT (from Open AI)
Chat GPT allows you to input a text query and it creates a written, logically thought out response for you. Many people have pondered if this could replace essay writing.
I gave Chat GPT a pretty easy question and asked it to write a biography for me based on the fact that I’m a senior reporter at Cheddar News, and that I cover social, streaming, tech and culture. I also am a night owl.
Here is what it said:
Chat GPT allows you to input a text query and it creates a written, logically thought out response for you. Many people have pondered if this could replace essay writing.
I gave Chat GPT a pretty easy question and asked it to write a biography for me based on the fact that I’m a senior reporter at Cheddar News, and that I cover social, streaming, tech and culture. I also am a night owl.
Here is what it said:
Courtesy of Michelle Castillo
For the most part, it’s pretty accurate! I haven’t written for The New York Times and The Washington Post, however, but I am impressed that it thinks I deserve to write there. I did write for the Los Angeles Times, Adweek and Hollywood Reporter to name a few, so it could have selected more accurate options.
I also do occasionally like a good book, but I’m much more of a movie and a concert person -- anyone who looks at my Instagram would know that. Shame on you, AI, you can scrape better than that.
I also do occasionally like a good book, but I’m much more of a movie and a concert person -- anyone who looks at my Instagram would know that. Shame on you, AI, you can scrape better than that.
Lensa
Lensa creates digital avatars of a person based on their selfies. So, of course, I had to try it.
After uploading the first 20 selfies I had of myself, I waited about 15 minutes to discover what AI thought I looked like.
Some were super accurate… or at least I thought they were?
Others were strange. Take a look at this one without a fully formed hand. Some of the avatars only had one leg or no eyes or blue eyes so AI was definitely taking creative liberties with my image.
Lensa creates digital avatars of a person based on their selfies. So, of course, I had to try it.
After uploading the first 20 selfies I had of myself, I waited about 15 minutes to discover what AI thought I looked like.
Some were super accurate… or at least I thought they were?
Others were strange. Take a look at this one without a fully formed hand. Some of the avatars only had one leg or no eyes or blue eyes so AI was definitely taking creative liberties with my image.
Courtesy of Michelle Castillo
Sometimes my eyes were crossed, a trend i noticed with a lot of my friends who did Lensa. I also didn’t submit full body images, but it sent me a photo of what I would look like from behind so definitely took creative licenses there.
Overall about seven or eight of them looked like me, and then the rest of them could be a lot of generic Asian women. Not all Asians look alike! I would say it was a fun experiment, but none of these pieces will hang in the MoMA anytime soon.
