AI’s influence on the creative industry

As a design team, we recently listened to the Creative Boom podcast episode with Red Antler’s Head of Creative, Kiser Barnes. The podcast focused on AI and its influence on the creative industry, which has been a frequent topic of discussion in the office and we’ve all been curious about where it’s going next.

How do we navigate the world of AI?

There are so many discussions to be had, especially in terms of our responsibilities as an agency alongside a range of opportunities it could create. In the podcast, Kiser Barnes raised a lot of questions about how we can use AI to benefit the physical world outside of design, such as using tools to help elderly people in care homes to increase their quality of life and assist care home workers in their jobs. However, it raised questions in the design team about how easily we could become disconnected from people that we’re trying to help.

We were both intrigued and slightly unsettled by the idea of personalised advertising. Even though it already exists, AI has the opportunity to tailor every element of advertising to a particular person even down to their colour preferences. Lewis and Sylvie both mentioned how this could create a risk of people losing their own sense of choice and end up being told what we like because of corporations telling us what we should buy based on who they think we are.

Another point of discussion was the use of AI generated models. The podcast talks about models that can now sell their likeness to brands and companies for virtual try-ons of clothing and runways. This is cost effective and reduces use of studios and travel for models, but it also opened up questions about ethics and regulations - how can companies make sure they are used responsibly and what can people do if they aren’t?

Craving human connection

AI definitely improves elements of our roles and creative process such as research and exploration, but it’s not something we’d rely on for final outcomes. We also don’t want to replace other creatives in the industry in areas like photography as we want to make sure it stays as a collaborative industry with creatives giving others opportunities to grow.

We all felt strongly about the risk of losing human connection. As Kiser pointed out, we’re already seeing companies return to ‘lo-fi’ methods of research such as talking to customers and getting back into the real world for real feedback from human beings. It also reminded us of how during COVID working from home appeared to be the future of work, but within a couple of years the office culture has slowly made a comeback with people wanting face-to-face connections. AI makes things faster and easier, but it can’t replace the value of human interaction (yet).

As a team, we’re cautiously optimistic. None of us have any idea where AI is going and if it’s something to be fully embraced or slightly feared. As a part of our roles, we’re always aiming to embrace new tools and opportunities to grow - but we want to make sure we never lose our ability to think creatively and connect as a human team.