The Best AI Design Tool You’ve Never Heard Of—Until Now

One of the earliest mainstream examples of using artificial intelligence (AI) and machine learning to improve access and affordability is in the creative and design field.

There is no denying that there is a long road ahead in determining the rules and limitations of what content a generative AI application should be allowed to access during its “formative years”, but that side of the conversation aside, what is incredibly exciting is the way the technology is making access to quality design work accessible to people who once thought it was out of their reach.

Many of you are familiar with the usual suspects, Dall-E, Firefly, and Midjourney, but I wanted to highlight a lesser-known alternative that is providing a solution in a very novel way. Join me as I look at how a stock image website, Freepik, embraced technology rather than seeing it as a threat and has subsequently enhanced its free and paid offerings while opening the door for anyone to earn an income using its AI image generator.

Welcome to the World of AI Image Generation by Freepik

Freepik was established in 2010 by two brothers, Alejandro and Pablo Banes. The initial concept was simple: They wanted to create an online image bank that featured free, high-quality designs. Thanks to this philosophy, the stock image site grew in popularity, soon amassing a library of over 33 million graphic resources. Now, it offers so much more - including an easy-to-use AI tool.

As a free account user, you can access the site's features, including stock image downloads (vectors, icons,? PSD files and more), video content, editable mockups and templates, and fonts. You can also access their AI image generator, where you can create 20 images daily and use the site's Upscale and online image editing tools.

The site offers paid subscriptions, too. But even here, their mindset of affordability shines through. Their Premium tier costs only €10 ($11) per month on their annual plan, but it enables access to all of the premium content and boosts your download and AI image creation access from 20 per day to 216,000 for the year, an average of 592 per day.?

Compared to Shutterstock’s cheapest plan, which costs $29 per month (and doesn’t include access to its AI tool), and Midjourney’s subscription plan, which costs $10 per month (and is purely an AI generator), Freepik’s premium membership is a steal!

Big Benefits for Designers and Users??

What is even more impressive than the cost of joining Freepik is the simplicity and efficacy of their visual design tools. The site offers a range of hand-crafted designs, photographs, and access to an incredible library of images and designs created through the text prompts of the site's users. Freepik has not limited your access to AI images to only those you make; it now allows its users to craft and share their creations on the platform.

This combination of tools and services enhances project quality, dramatically boosts delivery time, and keeps costs to a minimum.

AI Beginner? No Problem!

One of the reasons the Freepik solution stands out from its peers, besides the very competitive pricing of the platform, is how simple they have made it for everyone to be comfortable using their generative AI tools (in strong contrast, for example, to the Discord interface of Midjourney, which is super complicated).

When you first visit the AI Image Generator page, you are not overwhelmed by a screen full of options and fields. Instead, it showcases three images and invites you to use their prompts by clicking a "use prompt" button.

To the left of these image slices is a simple text box marked 'Prompt' with the words 'Describe your image'. While there are additional optimisation options listed below, these are in grey and do not indicate that they are needed to complete the task of generating your first image.

They offer handy guides to using their AI tools, covering everything from getting started as a beginner to understanding the benefits of permutation prompts and how to write them successfully (not to mention that they provide 15 free prompts to get you started).

These simple-to-follow guides allow you to return high-quality images that speak to your brand identity and maintain that visual identity moving forward.

How To Use Freepik’s AI Generation Tool

Nothing tells the story of visual AI design and shows its simplicity more effectively than creating a design from scratch. It is important to note that the Freepik image generator will not create content using known IPs to protect intellectual property rights. For example, if I used the prompt: ‘Darth Vader riding a shark through space’, I would get a Content Policy notice. And, while I offer the dark side of the Force my full endorsement, I do appreciate the need to protect the likeness of his breathiness from being abused.

Instead, I used a basic prompt that any sci-fi fan would appreciate: ‘A silhouette of a lone alien standing at the edge of a moon crater’. And the results were as expected: dark, desolate and alien.?

I decided to use the built-in colourisation, perspective and lighting tools to add some colour and life to the image. These allow you to alter the image without learning more in-depth prompts.

I chose the following:

• Size: Widescreen, in case we use it as a PC wallpaper.?
• Style: Cyberpunk for those neon colours and futuristic appeal.
• Camera: High angle for the drama of it all.

As you can see, by not changing the prompt, I kept the concept but added a new look and feel to the result with the added width.

I then opened one of the images by clicking on it and decided to Upscale it. Once that was done, I opted for a 2K upscale with a Vivid appeal. This allows the AI to sharpen lines, add new details, and elevate the prompt.

This is a quick example of going from an idea to a basic first output to a detailed 2K (or higher) resolution result in mere minutes. Best of all, this tool is free, and you don’t need any design knowledge, just the time to tinker.

And the best news of all is that you can make money from this tool! By joining Freepik’s creator community, you can sell your content and your AI creations with the click of a button. Upload 25 to 50 of your best artworks and use the handy contributor dashboard to track your downloads, earnings, likes and published files. You have the power to earn cash thanks to Freepik’s AI tool with ease.

If you’re looking for an AI image generator that is simple to use, easy to navigate, can help you earn money, and gives you access to millions of images, we suggest signing up at Freepik today.

About the Author

I’m Desmond Kurz, also known as Des Vader. Expect more as I share my insights and thoughts from more than 30 years of business experience. If you kindly follow me on LinkedIn and my YouTube channel, I shall endeavour not to disappoint!