@PalmerLuckey: artist backlash against AI stems from text interfaces, not tech

@PalmerLuckey
@PalmerLuckey

I have this partially-formed hypothesis that artist backlash against generative AI crystalized largely in response to text-driven user interfaces. The art world has come to accept tools like Photoshop (and earlier, photography itself) that still share the aesthetics of traditional art creation. If MidJourney, ChatGPT, DALL·E, etc had interfaces along the lines of Nvidia Canvas from 2020 (pictured below), it would look enough like existing tools that critique would look purist and elitist. Art via command line, on the other hand, looks sufficiently Other that you can easily berate the users as Not Artists. "You just typed a few words, you aren't an artist!" has a better ring than "Your drawing skills rely on Photoshop somewhat more than mine, you aren't an artist!"

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by timdaub.eth12379 🥝 • 11mo • x.com
AI summary of the linked article

Palmer Luckey argues that artist backlash against generative AI crystallized largely in response to text-driven user interfaces. He contrasts these with tools like Photoshop and photography, which the art world has accepted despite sharing traditional creative aesthetics. He suggests that a canvas-style interface such as Nvidia Canvas from 2020 would look like existing tools, so critics would appear purist and elitist. By contrast, text prompts look different enough that users can more easily be dismissed as not artists.

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.. plus Adobe has packed tools like Photoshop and Lightroom with AI but since it’s almost invisibly embedded it doesn’t feel like you are using AI, but actually it has been a total game changer in photo editing. Getting rid of some dust, noise, some distraction in the image, you just never think about it, just feels natural practice. Nobody is complaining about AI :) you’re saving so much time not doing tedious work. Since almost all photographers use Adobe tools to some extent almost all photos are a bit of photo and a bit of AI. (Not even talking about all the AI being embedded in cameras nowadays.)

But paradoxically in a way it also makes photography more about photography. Since the technology is not an obstacle anymore - the power of the photography is the illusion that the image is real (which it never really is) - what you’re seeing and what you’re telling becomes more important than ever.

Also interesting is Adobe Content Credentials. You sign in w/ your Ethereum wallet and embed provenance but also you can track what as been edited and if AI has been used. Now this needs to be extended with ZK technology in the camera itself so in the end we can assess the level of realness. I think the higher the level of realness, the higher the value :) whatever that is!

Adobe builds great fantastic tools, but obviously sad it’s not open source, they have an extractive monetizing model, they are monopolistic and users have no agency. Currently as a professional to compete you have no choice to use them, but waiting for someone to build the game changer.
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