As a child of the 1990s and 2000s, my life was heavily shaped by computers and the internet. It was all deeply fascinating, because we were the first generation to grow up with MSN Messenger, The Sims, LiveJournal, Flickr, Myspace, and the like. I could spend hours — or to be honest, probably days — scrolling the internet and getting lost in dreamy images on Tumblr. I would save them meticulously, since Pinterest didn’t exist yet, only to forget about them again a few months later. It was peak information overload at a time when all of this was still incredibly expensive (sorry, Mom). You could call it a waste of time, and in many ways, it probably was, but at the same time it was also a collection of dreams, hopes, and goals for my future life. For example, the internet showed me the diversity of illustration and, in doing so, laid the foundation for the life I live today.
But the internet has changed drastically since then. The latest addition has been artificial intelligence, which has quickly taken the upper hand. The internet, as my younger self knew it, is now officially a thing of the past. This is accompanied by a sense of loss, because by this year at the latest, it has become almost impossible to distinguish AI from reality.
I keep catching myself questioning every post, every image, and every video online. Who didn’t fall for those trampoline-jumping bunnies back then, or more recently for the wedding photos of Zendaya and Tom Holland? Where there used to be a sense of wonder at what other people were capable of — whether it was a photograph, an article, an illustration, or a building — there is now nothing but pure distrust. Most recently, this video caught me off guard.
First there was amazement at the endless beauty of nature, followed by a strangely nostalgic sadness and, yes, even irritation at the idea that it might not even be real. (Spoiler alert: the video is from 2023 and it’s real.)
Of course, the creation of fake content has been an issue long before AI. Images and videos can be manipulated and edited; misinformation can be written and spread. And to be honest: even though AI is here to stay, I’m often already fed up with the visual aspects. Because let’s be honest, how many Wes Anderson-style AI videos can we watch before we’ve had enough?
It has never been easier than it is today to create and spread a false narrative. Such fake content is rarely harmless, as the case between Collien Fernandes and her ex-husband Christian Ulmen shows. He is alleged to have created fake profiles and distributed deepfake pornography featuring her for years. What now requires just a few clicks, and little skill would previously have required someone to actually carry it all out.
This fatigue with AI doesn’t just affect me. AI has crept into our social media posts, school essays, emails and all of our daily lives – and, naturally, into advertising too. Probably the best-known case in Austria, which met with widespread disapproval, was an AI advert by XXXLutz. Even the Der Standard wrote an article on the subject with the apt headline: ‘When even the Putz family has to make way for AI’. In general, AI-generated imagery is becoming increasingly common in traditional advertising. Don’t get us wrong: we love AI, especially in the pitch process or visualising our initial concepts. After all, until now it wasn’t possible to present complex ideas in such detail at such an early stage. However, whether you want to use AI for final campaign visuals is something everyone must decide for themselves.
It is fascinating to observe that, alongside the rapid development of artificial intelligence and our ever-faster pace of life, a counter-movement is also emerging towards the human, the slow and the handmade.
One example of this is OpenAI’s very first advert, which was shot on 35mm film. Or the Apple TV intro, which was actually built and filmed in a studio. We humans are naturally prone to nostalgia and try to find a sense of calm amidst the fast pace of life. However, I believe that the trend towards slowing down in recent years is, above all, a sign that we do not want to lose our skills. Writing a prompt is not the same as composing a text yourself, drawing something or taking photographs with a camera. What value does something hold if there is no longer any work or skill behind it?
If you’re now hoping for a solution and an exciting conclusion to this post, I’m afraid I’ll have to disappoint you. I, too, find myself caught up in all the doom-and-gloom news about AI. But one thing is certain for me: use artificial intelligence if you want to. Let it help you organize a flood of information or create that funny birthday card in which you dress your dog up without having to torture him. Let it help you build a motorbike (to be honest, we wouldn’t recommend it, and we hereby disclaim any responsibility – but someone from our agency has already done it successfully!).
But at the same time, don’t forget:
- To think critically and independently. None of your friends care what ChatGPT thinks about a topic!
- To read articles that have been researched and professionally written. Asking Gemini for the best “XYZ” isn’t research.
- And last but not least: try things out for yourself and fail every now and then.
Because ultimately, there’s one thing we humans love: the human touch.