Embracing AI for Creativity

Creativity and technology are intrinsically linked.

Human technology developed out of human creativity and human technology is what allows the expression of human creativity. From using charcoal found in a fire pit to draw on rocks to using artificial intelligence to illustrate complex concepts, our technology is central to how we express our creativity.

Once a technology is internalized by humanity, we often even forget that it was once an emergent technology. We forget that it has not always been a part of the human experience. We forget that all emerging technologies go through a period of resistance and often a period of backlash. But once generally accepted, we look at people rejecting those technologies as being backwards.

That is not to say that, even once generally accepted and internalized, a technology can not be problematic. But only human creativity can refine a technology’s use to bend it towards betterment for all, even if that takes years, decades, or centuries. The more dramatic the technology changes our lives, the longer it will take to refine it for the good of humanity.

My point

I am embracing AI to be more creative. When I was young, I expressed my creative abilities with physical materials: pencils, paints, plaster. At the same time, I was learning to use computers, but, in those early days, their utility was limited.

As the capabilities of computers grew and digital tools become more sophisticated, so did my ability to express my own creativity. With AI, I’m beginning to find a tool that is increasing my creativity by decreasing time wasted on mindless routine. I am not blind to the problems inherent in digital technologies, especially AI. But, like all human tools, it is how humans use AI that will determine the benefit.

On that note, let me leave you with this quote that sums up my feelings:

You can resolve to live your life with integrity. Let your credo be this: Let the lie come into the world, let it even triumph. But not through me.

― Alexander Solzhenitsyn

AI might bring lies into the world, but not through me.