The lecture delved into the complexities of image and text-generating tools unraveling the anxiety and hope surrounding the introduction and rise of generative AI. The speaker challenged the perception that AI art is a form of theft and explored why generative AI has become hyped. It reshaped my understanding of AI art and helped me see its dual nature as both a commodity and a propaganda. The speaker emphasized that we should shift our focus from ‘who’ made the art to ‘what’ made the art. The exploration of the ethical dimensions of generative AI was particularly intriguing to me. I was not aware of how the AI-created information circulating is harming our belief systems and amplifying biases/ stereotypes. It was also fascinating to learn that AI-generated data will eventually be fed back to AI as the number of data sweeps and AI-generated content increases, eventually creating a confusing pool of information where it is hard to distinguish real from fake.
The speaker also brought up the critical point that there are real things behind AI like infrastructure and a whole hidden world of people working behind the scenes cleaning the data. The lecture pointed out that marginalized populations are more prone to surveillance because of increased data collection, highlighting the potential for AI to worsen existing inequalities. My biggest takeaway from the lecture was about the exploitative supply chains and misinformation with generative AI, prompting me to consider the ambiguous nature of “intelligence” and its underlying systems. The central question addressed was: ‘How do we prevent the tools from using us when we use them?’ The answer proposed by the speaker was to build solidarity. Another suggestion by the speaker was to be careful while framing prompts and using the generated content by reading through it for any biases and be aware of the ownership and copyrights while using the content in our work. I found myself wanting to know more detailed strategies for mitigating AI’s potential harm in art and beyond, as well as a deeper look into the human side of AI. Overall, the lecture provided insights into ethics, human creativity, and technology demystifying the hype surrounding generative AI tools.
