ChatGPT is like taking a weight loss pill

I just read an article about how to train ChatGPT to write emulating your own style. That sounds good at first, but let’s think about this for a second. Instead of working on a thought, exploring, struggling, failing, winning, and feeling the emotions of creating a gem, you just press a button. After it writes like you, the editing process requires you to modify your own writing, kind of. That’s some weird sh*t.

It makes me think about the Terminator. If we keep doing this will we grow an anger towards anyone named Sara Conner? Will we ride motorcycles wearing stolen leather jackets and cool sunglasses? I hope our future doesn’t end up an emulation of what we most probably would have done. I know there are many people that enjoy the fact that we won’t have to think that hard. I get it, but it’s kind of like weight loss pills. Instead of exercising and changing your diet you just take a pill and you’re thin. Instant gratification, but your muscles won’t get stronger by lifting a pill.

Creating something from a thought is what makes us unique. AI is altering our creative process. I can’t say if that is good or bad, it’s what’s next. Using ChatGPT as a mentor changes our process affecting the overall outcome. It’s not like the decision-making we have made without AI has always been sound. Batman & Robin was a terrible film. They cast Arnold Schwarzenegger as Mr. Freeze and had villains on ice skates. Christopher Columbus miscalculated the size of the globe, the Titanic lookouts didn’t have binoculars. Bad things can happen if you don’t plan correctly. Maybe if they used AI some of these disasters may have been avoided.

What scares me about AI is that we will lose the craftsmanship of ideation. When you get a thought, do you just ask ChatGPT to expand your thinking? What about your natural process? Your direction is altered depending on when you engage AI. What I hope is that people explore their own thinking and then use ChatGPT as a stepping stone, not a crutch. We can keep our individuality while using AI as a mentor, but if we hand over the reins and let the horse run wild our direction is uncertain.?

From an artist’s point of view, a lot of Midjourney art looks great, but it has a similar art style, 3D airbrushy. If you are advanced, the output can be more diverse, but for the average Joe, it’s the samo-samo. What I hope for humanity is that we have the patience to explore our own creativity without the help of AI. I know that the genie is out of the bottle, we’re not going back. ChatGPT doesn’t think of your premise, it expands your thought. Some of my best ideas came to me while I was on a bike ride. Unless you are a super geek, AI is not available while you cycle down the highway. When your legs are churning so goes your mind. Walking without headphones is available. You can listen to your own mind and come up with thoughts independent of electronics. I’m not saying silence is absolutely necessary, if the music gets your juices flowing, of course, turn on the tunes.

As a creative species, we need to smell the roses to get inspiration. We are driven to paint, write, sing, or sculpt by inspiration. AI is similar to reading a book to get an idea but barely skimming through the cliff notes. The most impactful songs and paintings move your soul because of the backstory, and the struggle. The difficulty in writing the perfect prompt doesn’t really mimic the creative process.