Microsoft: Is AI Art the end of Artists?

If you have been keeping up with what's trending, you would see that on TikTok there was a trend earlier in October 2022 where you type a word into an AI art generator and the AI creates a one-of-a-kind image through just a few words. A newer version of the AI art generator was released at the start of December 2022 on TikTok where if you upload an image of yourself or take a picture, the AI will process what it sees and transforms it into an anime style image.

So naturally, companies would follow trends which is what Microsoft did. Microsoft created a new AI art generating platform called ‘Microsoft Designer’, not waiting for the change to happen and to be the change instead. Microsoft Designer is a game changer for digital marketers, artists, stock image providers and more.

“With Designer, there’s no need to spend time building cards or social media posts from scratch, and you no longer need to search through thousands of pre-made templates.” -Microsoft

AI has many advantages with technology and future innovation of business and artists. Being cost-effective and minimal time being wasted on searching and creating, it feels like a dream. Or does it? Using AI in the PESTLE framework (Aguilar, 1967) for a successful business, they would have to assure that all six of these macro environment features are taken into consideration.

Is AI ethical?

Everything being digitalised these days makes it lose its value in a way. Such as reading, many would prefer to read online whilst others would like to get off their screens and actually pick up a book just as it has been for many years. This is the same with art and design. Making art takes time and is genuine talent but it seems since technology came in the way, it’s lost it’s value significantly. Despite art being adapted and seen as a broad thing that can be made anywhere whether it’s a canvas, a wall, or even online, the question that comes into play is that is AI generation the end of ‘real’ art and is it ethical enough for marketers and businesses to use on their platforms.

Is AI legal?

Copyright laws don’t cover AI-generated art because the images that are created and named one of a kind masterpiece obviously come from somewhere. The data and parts of the image made are collected through many sources across the web from existing art and images that people have made themselves. Copyright laws would come under Legal in the PESTLE framework so would AI art generation be a problem in the future and for some stakeholders? Since the AI doesn’t entirely take the art or image from the source, it takes a small amount which means it wont necessarily cover copyright laws so it’s not illegal but is it right?

To summarise although AI art generation has lots of potential for technological future, there are some issues being raised in the fact that if it’s the end of real art and if newer laws should be in place.?