Mira Murati, Chief Technology Officer of OpenAI, recently sparked a heated debate on the potential impacts of AI on creative professions, suggesting that it might replace some jobs but enhance overall creativity.
Short Summary:
- Mira Murati suggests AI might replace certain creative jobs.
- AI tools like ChatGPT and DALL-E aim to enhance creativity.
- Ethical considerations and job displacement are key concerns.
At Dartmouth College’s Thayer School of Engineering, Mira Murati, CTO of OpenAI, made waves with her bold assertion regarding the future of AI. “Some creative jobs maybe will go away, but maybe they shouldn’t have been there in the first place,” Murati told an attentive audience, prompting reactions from various quarters, particularly those fearing job displacement due to AI advancements.
Murati’s remarks struck a chord, as they highlighted the contentious conversation about AI’s ability to automate tasks traditionally done by humans. Her words carried a double-edged sword: some saw the potential for AI to democratize and expand creative endeavors, while others viewed it as a threat to job security. This disparity underscores the ongoing dilemma between the adoption of new technology and preservation of current job landscapes.
“It’s a tool, right? I expect that we will actually collaborate with it and it’s going to make our creativity expand,” Murati elaborated.
According to Murati, tools like ChatGPT and DALL-E are designed to work alongside humans, not to replace them. She emphasized their collaborative nature, proposing that these technologies could open new avenues for artistic expression and innovative problem-solving. In her view, AI has the potential to democratize creativity, making it accessible to people who once found creative fields out of reach due to lack of resources or training.
Murati went on to discuss the broader implications of AI on the learning landscape:
“Whether it’s creating new designs, coding, or writing an essay on concepts in topology,” she explained, “You can just learn about these things and interact with them in a much more intuitive way, and that expands your learning.”
While her vision for AI is optimistic, Murati did not shy away from acknowledging the risks. The discussion at Dartmouth also delved into ethical considerations surrounding AI development. Murati stressed the need for a nuanced approach to regulation that includes input from developers, policymakers, and the public. She underscored the vital role organizations like OpenAI play in steering AI research responsibly.
“We’re thinking a lot about this,” she said. “It’s definitely real that you will have AI systems with general capabilities, connecting to the internet, talking to each other—agents working together or with humans, collaborating seamlessly.”
Not everyone shares Murati’s perspective, especially within the creative community. Ed Zitron, a writer, podcast host, and CEO of EZPR, voiced his discontent over her remarks:
“The people losing their jobs to AI so far have been contract workers that helped fill gaps at organizations—necessarily so—that are now going to be filled with deeply mediocre slop, ordered by people who don’t understand the businesses they’re in,” Zitron opined.
Zitron expressed frustration with tech leaders like Murati who, in his view, lack an appreciation for the nuances and subtleties of creative work.
“These people treat creativity like a problem to be solved,” he continued, emphasizing the need for tech executives to be more mindful of the implications their decisions have on creative labor.
Adding to this discourse, visual artist Boris Eldagsen shared his unique experience with AI. Last year, Eldagsen used OpenAI’s DALL-E2 to win (and then decline) the World Photography Organization’s Sony World Photography Awards. He sees himself as a “conductor” who integrates AI technology into his creative process but doesn’t agree with Murati’s perspective that some jobs shouldn’t have existed in the first place.
“To say those jobs that could be eliminated by AI shouldn’t exist in the first place is just nonsense,” Eldagsen told Business Insider.
Another artist, Miles Astray, echoed similar sentiments, arguing that AI-produced work lacks the genuine human touch and creativity and devalues the artistic process.
“You need to sit down with your piece of paper and your paintbrush and start painting—that is how you hone your skill,” Astray remarked.
Despite their reservations, Eldagsen and Astray see some potential for AI to complement human creativity. The crux of their concerns lies in the broader issue of whether AI will truly enhance creativity or simply serve to replace it, making people redundant in the creative sphere.
Further complicating the issue, Scarlett Johannson’s legal team recently contested OpenAI for releasing a voice for its ChatGPT bot that closely resembled hers without permission, highlighting the murky legal and ethical landscape that accompanies AI’s rapid growth.
Interestingly, Murati’s comments dovetail with ongoing debates within tech circles. OpenAI CEO Sam Altman has also spoken candidly about AI-induced job losses:
“A lot of people working on AI pretend that it’s only going to be good; it’s only going to be a supplement; no one is ever going to be replaced. Jobs are definitely going to go away, full stop,” Altman pointed out in a July 2023 interview with The Atlantic.
Jeff Maggioncalda, CEO of Coursera, echoed this sentiment by stressing the urgent need for reskilling as AI continues to replace human tasks.
“If you don’t know how to use AI for your job, you’re in trouble. All employers want you to be able to use this if you’ve graduated,” Maggioncalda told Fortune.
Given these contentious debates, it’s clear that the integration of AI into the creative industry is far from straightforward. Will AI be the enemy or the ally of creativity? That remains a pivotal question as we move deeper into the age of AI.
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