[Syntheticate]

Creators aren't worried about others getting the ability to produce. It would be fantastic if everyone could paint, sculpt, carve -- or any number of skills that must be painstakingly built. The fear is that so many things will be produced without thought that, rather than entering a period of cultural abundance, we will enter a cultural stagnation.

This is not because AI tools cannot be used to generate good art! In fact we'll likely see artists adjust their process to take advantage of its strengths. Rather, it's because these tools are used to generate art (whether good, or mediocre) completely automatically, rendering art as a commodity rather than something special to treasure. If you see art as a means to an end then this might seem good. But part of the sheer power of art is in its scarcity; in the rarity encouraging us to take the time to investigate something more deeply, to build up relationships with art and artists, to find meaning and emotion and connection, which takes time and intention.

Imagine an AI-produced endless stream of music that takes all of its cues from your favorite songs and produces high-quality audio tuned exactly to what you like hearing. How long does this remain interesting? How difficult is it to tell this noise from new music which might later shape your tastes? Part of the stagnation this AI revolution represents is an added difficulty of cultural evolution, because instead of there being room for the truly new, we are swamped by imitations of everything that came before.

[prohobo]

A few points:

- Culture is already stagnant. In the last 10 years I can't think of a single movement or trend that isn't about politics, and certainly nothing "refreshing". More than that, we have a calcified hubris towards new technology that means we don't even bother figuring out how it might impact us, nor how to use it properly.

- We will get swamped with garbage content, and we will personalize all content (like generated music streams). We will stop hiring models, photographers, concept artists, musicians, writers, domain expert consultants, actors, etc.

- This will trigger an existential crisis for many people (I know, do we really need more of that?). I don't want to be snarky or mean, but I also think putting it this way might get the point across as a proverb: "Artists" who thought they could get away with drawing anime waifus and uploading them to DeviantArt or social media for likes and commissions will have to face the fact that they're not wanted or needed. That goes for almost the entire creator and influencer economy. That brand of narcissism and delusion will get punched in the face repeatedly by AI, because everyone will be generating their own special waifus without them.

Artists who want to create something new will be able to use AI to find the negative space where they can differentiate themselves. This dynamic of despair and searching might lead to a kind of renaissance.

The potential for renaissance is there, but it'll probably be very painful, and I don't think anyone currently even knows what it would look like.

[tomjen3]

>Imagine an AI-produced endless stream of music that takes all of its cues from your favorite songs and produces high-quality audio tuned exactly to what you like hearing

That sounds pretty awesome actually, but keep in mind that my tastes don't stay the same over a given day. At work I need something that helps me focus, when driving I want something that calms me down and if I ever get my ass in the gym I want something that pumps me the fuck up.

I would also expect an AI that did this to slightly alter it to what I was doing better and better. What it would not do is take into account what others liked, or what it got paid to promote (hello radio and probably Spotify).