It comes down to one simple factor: we can’t rely on the tech to do everything. When it comes down to it, AI can’t fully replace the “Human Factor” in creativity. I set about writing this article with the intention of letting ChatGPT write every other paragraph and only asking at the end if you could tell which sections were AI-generated, but when I started with the opening paragraph it quickly turned disastrous. The writing style was oddly uncanny – it read a little like a plagiarised school essay – and according to ChatGPT, the risks of AI are a full-on robot apocalypse (should we be nervous that the AI itself is suggesting that?)

So I generated a few introductory paragraphs, took inspiration from the parts I liked, cut the rest, and wrote it myself.

And as it turns out, that’s exactly how we should be using AI. In three simple steps, we can turn AI technology into an endless resource.

Step One: Humans inform AI – so inform it right

All that data mining that allows software like ChatGPT to create something out of nothing works by observing, analysing, and copying human creativity and speech patterns. It learns from pre-existing outputs and collected data. Artificial intelligence cannot mimic humanity on its own, because AI needs to be fed information on how to act.

And if we educate it well, AI has limitless potential. But there’s also a significant responsibility involved on the part of the developers to ensure AI like ChatGPT is learning from the right sources to better understand the nuances of humanity – for example, if you were to ask ChatGPT for a political opinion, it’d draw the answer from dozens of human opinions shared across the internet, collating them into something new.

That’s perfectly fine as long as those opinions are varied to the point of being unbiased, but add a little partisanship into how the AI has been taught and suddenly some unsuspecting ChatGPT user is posting prejudiced views out into the world in their AI-generated social captions. There’s something to be said about society if that outcome were to happen – AI is like a mirror, reflecting back at us what we put out into the world. If the outputs are controversial, it’s our own fault, and we could all use some reflection to look at ourselves and how we present ourselves online. 

But even if machine learning is picking up some of humanity’s less savoury habits, we still have a safety net with steps two and three. 

Step Two: Let AI take on the workload

Remember the comic strip above? For the last thirty-odd years, every development in technology has sped up our lives. Everything you could ask for is at the click of a button, and so the demand for instant gratification is through the roof. For the first time since the tech revolution began in the ‘90s, something is buying us back our freedom, and that’s AI. A little AI support can release you from that blank page syndrome that keeps you from starting a project. It can cut down the number of steps to a finished product by doing some of the legwork for you and thinking outside the box of human logic. Taking inspiration from an AI response is no different to spending hours researching from other people’s work, it simply cuts down the time spent and reduces the chances of accidental plagiarism. AI is there to assist us, not to replace us.

And AI assistance isn’t just about creativity, but also data analysis and countless other factors. Pitting the event audience against the machine in choosing where to run particular ads to reach the right people, Rob proved that human opinion was polarising and varied, and the data-backed reality was different to the majority vote every time. As individuals, we’re informed by our own experiences, creating bias behind our logic no matter how hard we try.

The truth is, everyone is going to be using AI in the future to some degree, whether we like it or not. And at the end of the day, it’s what we do with the AI outputs that really matters.

Step Three: Bring it back to Human Touch

At least in terms of content creation, it is rare that we should accept an AI output as a finished piece. It can give you a template, but you need to tailor it with a human touch.

Let’s face it – AI can produce some really odd or bland content. It’s bound to happen when AI is learning from so many sources, because – at least for the time being – any personality behind the machines is just mimicry of the real thing. To make it work for us, we need to treat AI creations as a base to build off, not a replacement for human brilliance. 

“Humans paired with machines is what creates the best results. AI on its own does not produce

good quality content – the technology should be the starting point, not the endpoint.”

Amy Wright, Automated Creative (Humans vs. Tech 2023)

When it comes to creative outputs, that’s the final line. Humans and machines are a dynamic duo, as long as we allow it. We could waste a lot of time arguing againsrt the use of AI, but that would do little more than slow the tide of its inevitable use – I say have a little more faith in humanity. It’s a wild west out there right now, but AI will never replace human creativity for good. In fact, it’s bound to make us value it even more.