Artists Face AI Threat

Dixya Poudel

As the surge of AI (Artificial Intelligence) takes height, repercussions have been observed throughout most aspects of the human world. It has even been felt on the fields of art. For many artists, the rise of AI could mean huge redundancy, which has resulted in an uproar. 

In May 2023, Hollywood writers went on strike and one of their grievances was the use of AI in creation of movies. Hollywood productions have increasingly been resorting to AI. Especially animation movies, which have a huge global box-office market, could see immense use of AI and of course, creatives are worried over their possible replacement by technology. It has been predicted that in the upcoming future, AI could replace up to 90 per cent of the workload in the creation of animated movies.

 It isn’t thus surprising that artists and writers feel the threat of technology impugning their livelihood and even their passion. Art has always been at the forefront of human world, particularly in the West. Europe was the centre of renaissance centuries ago which saw an immense rise in arts and culture such as literature, fine arts, music and philosophy. Another achievement of renaissance was scientific advancements in fusion with the arts. In current times too, could art collaborate with science? One could argue that modern art does use different forms of technology as in photography. 

A camera is a technological device that uses various scientific concepts to bring life to a shot. Printing photographs is a complex technology. Further, in the creation of movies too technology triumphs. From black and white movies to colour motion pictures, the movie industry has been a fusion of art and technology. Even though technology can boost art, the rise of AI poses a risk in part because it could take jobs from humans and in other that it is readily or even freely available for use. In social media, AI is causing a huge racket. Artists are worried that their work will be overtaken. 

It is one of the reasons that they have taken to voice their concerns over AI stressing the necessity of regulation. As of now, it is possible to create AI generated art quite easily and even sell them off as one’s own creation which of course would be morally wrong. Since ChatGPT launched in 2022, there have been debates over the growing prominence of AI. What could the future bring as techies are hell-bent on creating their own versions of Artificial Intelligence? It has become a hot new trend in the heart of Silicon Valley. Given the huge impact it could have, perhaps AI regulation is necessary. 

European Union has recently put forward a set of regulations called the AI Act. This law will require generative AI System like ChatGPT to be reviewed before being released. It categorises AI risks into four levels: unacceptable risk, high risk, limited risk, and minimal risk. Overall, the goal is to ensure fairness and transparency while managing how AI algorithms learn, evolve and adapt. 

After much concession, Hollywood writers arrived to an agreement with movie studios in September 2023 which shows that perhaps artists don’t have to be threatened by AI. Instead, a balance could be created where there could be space for both artists and AI technology.