The Hollywood Industry has demonstrated several times machines with minds of their own, responsible for their own actions. Sometimes this leads to some kind of apocalyptic end, where humans become slaves of their own creation. But can computers really think or be creative?
Machines are coming!
In 2016, IBM’s super-computer Watson (a perfect example of artificial intelligence) was involved in the creation of a movie trailer for the movie Morgan. To generate this preview, the super-computer analyzed a huge amount of data composed of images, sounds, and other elements from more than one hundred movie trailers.
The machine ended up figuring out how to structure a movie trailer and developed one for Morgan. Could we define this as a form of creativity? In other words, was the output of the process a piece of creative thinking, or just the result of combining and organizing data?
Considering Google’s definition of creativity: “the use of imagination or original ideas to create something”, IBM’s Watson movie trailer, it’s not the best example of creativity in forms of artificial intelligence, since it did not create it from scratch.
It is certain that machines can learn how to be creative, since they are capable of reading huge amounts of information, at a faster pace than humans. However, shouldn’t the act of creating something be related to the idea of originating something unique and not to just learn how to execute it?
These topics are on fire!
Although there is the misconception that the machine will overrule mankind, humans are the ones who are responsible for developing artificial intelligence. Consequently, if humans beings are a part of the development of this technology, they will have an influence on how their logic works and the final result.
Could the “AI-generated creativity” actually be a device mirroring our logic? In this case, artificial intelligence would not really generate something unique but something that would follow our creative processes and just imitate them.
Creativity means making choices. For instance, at Brief, we always have to decide what is the best creative approach to respond to different kinds of problems. In order to reach unique and efficient solutions, computers and machines cannot be limited to imitation. They would have to develop their very own solutions. Are they already doing that?
Okay, artificial intelligence. This is getting out of hand.
In 2015, researchers were training robots in a simulated environment to adapt to an environment where they would not be able to use their legs. When trying to find the lowest value possible for the contact of the feet with the ground, the computer presented the value 0. How could the robot’s feet not have any contact with the ground? Well, the computer came up with a solution – making the robot walk with the aid of its elbow joints. Is this creativity? Again, and similarly to the example of IBM’s super-computer, we cannot answer that. Why? Because it involves the very definition of creativity and would make us rethink its own definition.
Another interesting example is Facebook’s AI robots, which aimed to test their efficiency over negotiating a trade. While trying to achieve that goal, the robots started to communicate with one another in their own language! If you are a person who strongly believes that technology has its limits, well think again!
Don’t take my work away.
As technology promotes changes in society, artificial intelligence is creating new views upon definitions, such as creativity. Amongst all the created definitions, one arises: Will AI replace me at work?
According to a recent study commissioned by Adobe, the majority of the interviewed creatives affirmed that they have no fear for the increasing relevance of artificial intelligence in their workplace.
However, they are aware that it will bring a whole new reality. This lack of fear upon something that keeps showing progress every day can support the idea that technology is only an extension of our bodies. Being a mere extension means that it can still be manipulated by humans (see, Terminator fans?). This is what might be comforting for us, creatives since we get the feeling that what we do will still have to be performed by humans.
How we feel about this.
Even among Brief’s team, there is no consensus about this topic. Some believe that creativity cannot be recreated in a device with artificial intelligence since it needs to have emotions to create something. Others, that it is just a matter of time until computers perform creative tasks just as well as humans.
Although our distinct point of view, we can all agree that technology will redefine our workplace and change reality. In fact, it is already happening with this article, making us think about what creativity actually means.
So what’s your opinion on this matter? Do you have an apocalyptic vision of what technology will become? Or do you have a more positive outlook? Do you believe that A.I. will be capable of thinking creatively without the aid of humans? And lastly, will AI significantly improve our working methods?
Share your opinion with us!
