With such convenient and amazing tools, you would think more people would be really happy about these advancements. Are people just afraid of the computer? A bunch of old fogies who don't understand the technology? The tinfoil-hat conspiracists coming up with new fears?

A lot of the anger comes from artists and creators themselves, actually, and understandably the more you look into it. This goes back to how these AI learn: by studying things from the internet or are fed into them and analyzing the data accoding to their systems. Which means anything posted on the internet can be used, whether their creators want to allow it or not.

This leads into concerns about copyright and stolen art. Sure the copyright system is a little bit of a mess at times, but nobody likes having the work they slaved over, suffered on, something they may have poured hours into, taken by someone who just pops it into a generator to feed the machine and make some cheap copy in the style of THEIR work.

These AI have also prompted questions regarding the safety and security of workers, artists and others working in the creative sphere; their jobs, livelihoods and their very creations themselves are on the line. Some say these should not be allowed or even counted as art at all. Some think that some adjustments and moderation would be enough. Others have already begun trying or have adapted, looking for tools that help them with their daily workload. There are a variety of opinions, some trollish in nature but most bring forward legitimate reasons for either concern or excitement over these developing tools.

Whatever the case may be, the growth of these tools has brought many interesting discussions to the table, about art as a whole, security in our workplaces, and the extensive possibilities of AI. Myself, I remain somewhat on the fence about it. As a creator, I can see the immense benefits from tools that I could use as reference and to streamline the more repetitive, tedious parts of my workload. On the other hand though, I recognize all the possible concerns both I and my fellow artists have with the appearances of these generative AIs. What is safe, and how do we protect these things that many of us - I certainly do - think of as precious parts of ourselves?

It won't be an easy answer. The cat is already out of the bag, and it seems almost impossible to force it back in now. I do hope this was at least somewhat helpful for you in understanding what Generative AI is, what it is used for, and what all the ruckus is about. From here, you can return to the last page and play around with the AI I've shared there - which in my couple minutes exploration shouldn't make you an art thief :P - or return to the main page. I am also including this fascinating article I found featuring Nightshade, somebody's attempt at protecting people's works from these AI. It is a couple months old now, but it is an fascinating read about an interesting solution to protecting one's art. Just click on the skele-fella pictured here!