As someone who enjoys AI as much as the next guy, here's my take on AI, art, and the never-ending war between AI bros and artists. TL;DR: Artists have an immense creative talent that should be respected and valued. Purposefully teasing them, devaluing their craft, or plagiarising their work is distasteful. At the same time, people shouldn't be attacked for using AI if they can't afford to hire artists or spend years learning an entirely new skill. I'm not creative at all, and watching the stuff that artists come up with is genuinely mind-blowing to me. I sometimes watch artists like Jazza simply because their work is so impressive. The ability to start with a blank canvas and turn an idea in your head into something that didn't exist before is an incredible skill. We should be supporting artists as a society, not pushing them away or treating their craft as obsolete because a machine can generate something in a few seconds. AI, imo, is best suited for left-brained activities: logical, complex processes that help advance society technologically. Analysing information, solving problems, automating tedious work, coding, research, and essentially building upon existing frameworks or blueprints. That's where I think AI has enormous potential. Tbh, even generating images could fall somewhere within this category because AI doesn't exactly "create" in the same way a human does. It processes what already exists and produces something based on patterns it has learned. Right-brained activities are much more tied to the human experience: art, music, storytelling, culture, expression, etc. No matter how much generative AI improves, I don't think it can truly replicate the creative capabilities of human beings. It can imitate the output incredibly well, but the human experiences, emotions, intentions, influences, and imagination behind that output are something else entirely. At the same time, I understand that not everyone has the resources to hire artists, buy commissioned art, or learn the craft themselves. It's not a black-and-white world out there. These skills can take years to master, and for many people, they simply aren't their passion or talent. People can use AI to generate images, gaming assets, concepts, memes, placeholders, or whatever else they need, and they shouldn't automatically be shamed for doing so. The point is that using AI doesn't require putting actual artists down in the process. You don't need to mock artists because AI can generate an image faster. You don't need to intentionally copy someone's work to prove a point. And you definitely don't need to celebrate the idea of artists losing their livelihoods because you happen to like AI. So appreciate your fellow artists, even if you disagree with some of their views on AI. Their creativity contributes far more to civilisation, culture, entertainment, and the way we experience the world than I think people sometimes realise. And that respect should go both ways. Artists shouldn't be hunting down and attacking every person who uses AI either. A lot of people don't have the funds to regularly hire artists, nor the time or passion required to spend years mastering an artistic skill. Using an accessible tool doesn't automatically mean someone hates artists or wants to replace them. AI isn't going anywhere. Neither is human creativity. So maybe the healthiest path forward is learning how to live with both. Use AI where it makes sense, support human creativity where you can, respect the work that goes into art, and stop treating every person on the other side of the debate like an enemy. Technology can make creating things easier. Human beings are still the reason those things have meaning. Thank you for coming to Mango's TED Talk.