邁爾斯·阿斯特雷是一位跨學(xué)科藝術(shù)家,他將融合后的寫(xiě)作與攝影與藝術(shù)活動(dòng)相結(jié)合。這一舉動(dòng)源于他于2012年開(kāi)始的一場(chǎng)慢節(jié)奏沉浸式世界之旅。
作為一名作家和攝影師,人工智能生成內(nèi)容的影響對(duì)我來(lái)說(shuō)至少是兩個(gè)層面的。不過(guò),我倒是不那么擔(dān)心這一顛覆性的技術(shù)可能對(duì)自身工作帶來(lái)的影響。我已經(jīng)構(gòu)建了個(gè)人專(zhuān)屬創(chuàng)意語(yǔ)言,這一點(diǎn)機(jī)器基本是不會(huì)的。我擔(dān)心的是,結(jié)構(gòu)性的社會(huì)變化可能會(huì)讓生計(jì)、職業(yè)、工業(yè)以及民主基石在一夜之間消失。
別緊張,我并不是在預(yù)言世界末日,也不是在妖魔化人工智能。不過(guò),我的確認(rèn)為我們有必要盡快將公眾有關(guān)人工智能的高談闊論轉(zhuǎn)化為實(shí)際行動(dòng)。我們并非處于浪潮之上,而是深陷于深海之中,因此沒(méi)有退路可言。
最近,我為自己的作品(下圖)報(bào)名參加了1839攝影獎(jiǎng)(1839 Awards),角逐人工智能組獎(jiǎng)項(xiàng)。這是一個(gè)知名的國(guó)際攝影大賽。反常之處:這幅看似無(wú)頭的火烈鳥(niǎo)是一張真實(shí)拍攝的照片,只不過(guò)這只鳥(niǎo)在忙著梳理腹部的羽毛罷了,因此頸部被腹部遮住了。我覺(jué)得,如果這幅報(bào)名作品能夠俘獲賽事知名評(píng)審委員會(huì)的芳心,那么我便能證明:人類(lèi)制作的內(nèi)容并沒(méi)有失去其相關(guān)性;大自然及其人類(lèi)解讀者依然可以打敗機(jī)器;以及創(chuàng)意和情感并非一串?dāng)?shù)字那么簡(jiǎn)單。
經(jīng)過(guò)評(píng)審委員會(huì)評(píng)審,我的照片與少數(shù)幾張“真正”的人工智能生成圖片最終入圍,并角逐兩個(gè)獎(jiǎng)項(xiàng):評(píng)審選擇獎(jiǎng)以及公眾投票獎(jiǎng)。最終,這幅作品說(shuō)服了評(píng)委和觀眾,于上周同時(shí)贏得了這兩個(gè)獎(jiǎng)項(xiàng)。據(jù)我所知,這幅照片是第一張贏得人工智能大獎(jiǎng)的真實(shí)照片。
即便如此,那又能怎樣?
什么是真,什么是非真?
當(dāng)然,我對(duì)于誤導(dǎo)評(píng)委感到不安,但我覺(jué)得他們是專(zhuān)業(yè)人士,他們也應(yīng)該會(huì)意識(shí)到,此次對(duì)人工智能的發(fā)難及其道德層面的影響超過(guò)了欺騙觀眾這一不道德行為。當(dāng)然,具有諷刺意味的是,人工智能其實(shí)也在欺騙觀眾。因此,這也是我最初決定采取這個(gè)不光彩手段的原因:近些年來(lái),多張人工智能生成的照片在它們本不應(yīng)該參賽的國(guó)際攝影大賽中奪得桂冠,成為了國(guó)際討論熱點(diǎn)。這一事實(shí)也凸顯了該技術(shù)能力的不斷增長(zhǎng)。
在關(guān)注這些熱點(diǎn)之余,我意識(shí)到我可以反其道而行之,做一件只有人類(lèi)才可以做的事情。有人可能會(huì)說(shuō),人工智能給我?guī)?lái)了靈感,但很快就會(huì)有人回應(yīng)說(shuō),這些機(jī)器依然是人類(lèi)在操控,將人工智能當(dāng)做是其視覺(jué)心腹。事實(shí)在于,這一理念確實(shí)說(shuō)服了一批行業(yè)專(zhuān)業(yè)人士,包括《紐約時(shí)報(bào)》(New York Times)、費(fèi)頓出版社(Phaidon Press)、華蓋創(chuàng)意(Getty Images)、巴黎蓬皮杜藝術(shù)中心(Centre Pompidou)、佳士得(Christie’s)和馬多克斯畫(huà)廊(Maddox Gallery)的成員。這個(gè)事實(shí)也說(shuō)明了一些問(wèn)題,我覺(jué)得應(yīng)該按照以下順序排列:
? 自然依然超越機(jī)器。
? 我們的大腦還沒(méi)有適應(yīng)新常態(tài)。
? 人們已經(jīng)無(wú)法分辨人工智能圖片與真實(shí)照片。
第一個(gè)是毋庸置疑的。我現(xiàn)在來(lái)解釋剩下的兩個(gè)。
我認(rèn)為這件事不應(yīng)該責(zé)怪評(píng)審。事實(shí)上,他們并沒(méi)有拆穿我的小伎倆并不是說(shuō)他們專(zhuān)業(yè)不強(qiáng),而是在于認(rèn)知偏差。他們并沒(méi)有想到有人會(huì)用真實(shí)照片報(bào)名參加人工智能組別比賽,因此沒(méi)有做任何準(zhǔn)備。誰(shuí)又能想到此事?
然而,問(wèn)題就出在這里:同樣,我們作為一個(gè)社會(huì),也壓根沒(méi)有準(zhǔn)備去質(zhì)疑我們遇到的每一個(gè)圖片、音頻文件或視頻,因?yàn)樵跉v史上我們無(wú)需這樣做,亦或我們不應(yīng)該這樣做??赡苁且?yàn)橘|(zhì)疑眼前所有錯(cuò)誤的事情和任何人,是一件可悲的事情。然而,如果我們希望走在AI前面,那么我們的批判性思考就必須與AI的光速發(fā)展進(jìn)行角逐,這是我們每個(gè)人都應(yīng)該承擔(dān)的責(zé)任。
至于那些與現(xiàn)實(shí)沒(méi)有多大區(qū)別的人工智能照片,我這么做背后的用意與柏林藝術(shù)家鮑里斯?艾爾達(dá)格森去年參賽的照片沒(méi)有太大的區(qū)別,當(dāng)時(shí),他用一張人工智能生成的圖片贏得了索尼全球攝影大賽的創(chuàng)意組獎(jiǎng)項(xiàng),只不過(guò)他是反其道而行之,相當(dāng)于換湯不換藥。人們目前還沒(méi)有為應(yīng)對(duì)人工智能的各種影響做好準(zhǔn)備。
誠(chéng)然,如果人工智能能得到合理的利用,它甚至有助于創(chuàng)意的提升。它確實(shí)在幫助艾爾達(dá)格森進(jìn)行創(chuàng)作。然而,人工智能也會(huì)讓很多創(chuàng)意徒有其表,取決于創(chuàng)意人士如何運(yùn)用,以及我們會(huì)為此推行什么樣的制度框架。一些創(chuàng)意人士已經(jīng)在利用人工智能來(lái)外包一些瑣碎的任務(wù),并釋放相關(guān)資源,讓自己抽身從事真正熱愛(ài)的項(xiàng)目。其他創(chuàng)意人士可能已經(jīng)失去了不少機(jī)會(huì),因?yàn)樵诹私馊斯ぶ悄苌蓛?nèi)容的雇主眼中,他們的作品看起來(lái)流于形式。
不過(guò),這種夸張的、非黑即白的場(chǎng)景中存在著很多灰色空間。例如,如果初創(chuàng)企業(yè)資金緊張,不愿意聘請(qǐng)圖形設(shè)計(jì)師,也可以使用人工智能來(lái)創(chuàng)作免費(fèi)的公司標(biāo)志。因此,這位圖形設(shè)計(jì)師就因此而失去了一份工作。同一家初創(chuàng)企業(yè)可能還會(huì)用人工智能來(lái)生成其博客的通用圖庫(kù),同樣的內(nèi)容如果由圖庫(kù)攝影師完成的話得花不少錢(qián)。不過(guò),這位圖庫(kù)攝影師可能已經(jīng)在使用AI,以更低的價(jià)格來(lái)制作其內(nèi)容。這件事情十分復(fù)雜。一旦我們開(kāi)始討論那些欺騙觀眾的具體內(nèi)容,無(wú)論是有意還是無(wú)意,情形就會(huì)變得更復(fù)雜。例如,AI可能永遠(yuǎn)無(wú)法取代的便是有新聞價(jià)值活動(dòng)的真實(shí)照片。不過(guò),AI可以制造假照片,來(lái)虛構(gòu)電腦之外從未發(fā)生過(guò)的新聞。
人工智能是利大還是弊大?
科技本身沒(méi)有好壞之分,天生就是如此。真正決定其好壞的是人類(lèi)使用科技的方式。如果我們沒(méi)有在廣島扔原子彈,而是利用其來(lái)改變靠近地球行星的軌跡,我們可能會(huì)將其稱(chēng)為神圣炸彈。在推動(dòng)人類(lèi)進(jìn)步或毀滅人類(lèi)方面,人工智能與其他科技沒(méi)有任何區(qū)別。
然而,既然我們未能利用好其顛覆性的前任——社交媒體,那么面對(duì)新一輪的變革,我們應(yīng)該先發(fā)制人。不過(guò)別誤會(huì),我喜歡變革。我的整個(gè)人生都處于變化之中。不過(guò),變化需要適應(yīng)。當(dāng)社交媒體讓互聯(lián)網(wǎng)發(fā)生巨變之時(shí),它最初是通過(guò)連接全球各地的民眾,然后推動(dòng)了阿拉伯之春這類(lèi)革命。非常好!不過(guò)在不久之后,它便成為了散播虛假新聞的元兇,傷害了選舉和民主。
人工智能有望讓這一切看起來(lái)就像是孩子們的惡作劇,相當(dāng)于把大規(guī)模誤導(dǎo)武器放到了任何需要它的人的手中,而且無(wú)需任何背景調(diào)查。如果我們希望獲得標(biāo)記人工智能生成內(nèi)容的能力,那么我們可能有必要為其貼上標(biāo)簽。這一重?fù)?dān)應(yīng)由政府和私營(yíng)領(lǐng)域來(lái)肩負(fù),而且其重要性不亞于民間以及個(gè)人在批判性思維以及質(zhì)疑司空見(jiàn)慣事情方面所應(yīng)肩負(fù)的責(zé)任。我們必須引導(dǎo)年輕人去開(kāi)展這件事情。
反響與深意
人工智能正在重塑數(shù)字領(lǐng)域的格局,受此影響,有關(guān)人工智能對(duì)內(nèi)容未來(lái)及其背后創(chuàng)作者影響的討論也是愈發(fā)激烈,這些創(chuàng)作者包括藝術(shù)家、記者和圖形設(shè)計(jì)師。由此看來(lái),我的惡作劇算是觸碰到了敏感點(diǎn)。全球各地的新聞媒體紛紛報(bào)道此事,而且好的老社交媒體對(duì)其進(jìn)行了放大。鋪天蓋地的積極反饋令我應(yīng)接不暇。這個(gè)做法及其背后的動(dòng)機(jī)獲得了大量支持,不過(guò),最令我感到驚訝和自愧不如的莫過(guò)于賽事組織方對(duì)此事的反饋。
在我告知賽事舉辦方“火烈鳥(niǎo)”照片的真實(shí)情形之后,考慮到需要公平對(duì)待其他使用AI圖片的參賽選手,他們?nèi)∠嘶鹆银B(niǎo)照片的參賽資格。聯(lián)合創(chuàng)始人兼總監(jiān)莉莉·費(fèi)爾曼給我發(fā)了一封郵件,并評(píng)論說(shuō),她非常欣賞此舉深刻的用意,也肯定了相關(guān)聲明的重要性和及時(shí)性。
她寫(xiě)到:“我們希望,此舉能讓眾多擔(dān)心人工智能的攝影師增強(qiáng)這一方面的意識(shí),并為他們帶來(lái)希望?!?/p>
就我自己而言,我希望我的勝利能成為業(yè)界眾多創(chuàng)意人士的勝利,也希望那些擔(dān)心人工智能的人士能真正意識(shí)到這一點(diǎn)。人工智能技術(shù)將常伴我們左右,因此我希望人們能夠以一種造福眾人的方式來(lái)適應(yīng)它,采用它。(財(cái)富中文網(wǎng))
Fortune.com上評(píng)論文章中表達(dá)的觀點(diǎn)僅代表作者個(gè)人觀點(diǎn),并不代表《財(cái)富》雜志的觀點(diǎn)和立場(chǎng)。
譯者:馮豐
審校:夏林
邁爾斯·阿斯特雷是一位跨學(xué)科藝術(shù)家,他將融合后的寫(xiě)作與攝影與藝術(shù)活動(dòng)相結(jié)合。這一舉動(dòng)源于他于2012年開(kāi)始的一場(chǎng)慢節(jié)奏沉浸式世界之旅。
作為一名作家和攝影師,人工智能生成內(nèi)容的影響對(duì)我來(lái)說(shuō)至少是兩個(gè)層面的。不過(guò),我倒是不那么擔(dān)心這一顛覆性的技術(shù)可能對(duì)自身工作帶來(lái)的影響。我已經(jīng)構(gòu)建了個(gè)人專(zhuān)屬創(chuàng)意語(yǔ)言,這一點(diǎn)機(jī)器基本是不會(huì)的。我擔(dān)心的是,結(jié)構(gòu)性的社會(huì)變化可能會(huì)讓生計(jì)、職業(yè)、工業(yè)以及民主基石在一夜之間消失。
別緊張,我并不是在預(yù)言世界末日,也不是在妖魔化人工智能。不過(guò),我的確認(rèn)為我們有必要盡快將公眾有關(guān)人工智能的高談闊論轉(zhuǎn)化為實(shí)際行動(dòng)。我們并非處于浪潮之上,而是深陷于深海之中,因此沒(méi)有退路可言。
最近,我為自己的作品(下圖)報(bào)名參加了1839攝影獎(jiǎng)(1839 Awards),角逐人工智能組獎(jiǎng)項(xiàng)。這是一個(gè)知名的國(guó)際攝影大賽。反常之處:這幅看似無(wú)頭的火烈鳥(niǎo)是一張真實(shí)拍攝的照片,只不過(guò)這只鳥(niǎo)在忙著梳理腹部的羽毛罷了,因此頸部被腹部遮住了。我覺(jué)得,如果這幅報(bào)名作品能夠俘獲賽事知名評(píng)審委員會(huì)的芳心,那么我便能證明:人類(lèi)制作的內(nèi)容并沒(méi)有失去其相關(guān)性;大自然及其人類(lèi)解讀者依然可以打敗機(jī)器;以及創(chuàng)意和情感并非一串?dāng)?shù)字那么簡(jiǎn)單。
經(jīng)過(guò)評(píng)審委員會(huì)評(píng)審,我的照片與少數(shù)幾張“真正”的人工智能生成圖片最終入圍,并角逐兩個(gè)獎(jiǎng)項(xiàng):評(píng)審選擇獎(jiǎng)以及公眾投票獎(jiǎng)。最終,這幅作品說(shuō)服了評(píng)委和觀眾,于上周同時(shí)贏得了這兩個(gè)獎(jiǎng)項(xiàng)。據(jù)我所知,這幅照片是第一張贏得人工智能大獎(jiǎng)的真實(shí)照片。
即便如此,那又能怎樣?
什么是真,什么是非真?
當(dāng)然,我對(duì)于誤導(dǎo)評(píng)委感到不安,但我覺(jué)得他們是專(zhuān)業(yè)人士,他們也應(yīng)該會(huì)意識(shí)到,此次對(duì)人工智能的發(fā)難及其道德層面的影響超過(guò)了欺騙觀眾這一不道德行為。當(dāng)然,具有諷刺意味的是,人工智能其實(shí)也在欺騙觀眾。因此,這也是我最初決定采取這個(gè)不光彩手段的原因:近些年來(lái),多張人工智能生成的照片在它們本不應(yīng)該參賽的國(guó)際攝影大賽中奪得桂冠,成為了國(guó)際討論熱點(diǎn)。這一事實(shí)也凸顯了該技術(shù)能力的不斷增長(zhǎng)。
在關(guān)注這些熱點(diǎn)之余,我意識(shí)到我可以反其道而行之,做一件只有人類(lèi)才可以做的事情。有人可能會(huì)說(shuō),人工智能給我?guī)?lái)了靈感,但很快就會(huì)有人回應(yīng)說(shuō),這些機(jī)器依然是人類(lèi)在操控,將人工智能當(dāng)做是其視覺(jué)心腹。事實(shí)在于,這一理念確實(shí)說(shuō)服了一批行業(yè)專(zhuān)業(yè)人士,包括《紐約時(shí)報(bào)》(New York Times)、費(fèi)頓出版社(Phaidon Press)、華蓋創(chuàng)意(Getty Images)、巴黎蓬皮杜藝術(shù)中心(Centre Pompidou)、佳士得(Christie’s)和馬多克斯畫(huà)廊(Maddox Gallery)的成員。這個(gè)事實(shí)也說(shuō)明了一些問(wèn)題,我覺(jué)得應(yīng)該按照以下順序排列:
? 自然依然超越機(jī)器。
? 我們的大腦還沒(méi)有適應(yīng)新常態(tài)。
? 人們已經(jīng)無(wú)法分辨人工智能圖片與真實(shí)照片。
第一個(gè)是毋庸置疑的。我現(xiàn)在來(lái)解釋剩下的兩個(gè)。
我認(rèn)為這件事不應(yīng)該責(zé)怪評(píng)審。事實(shí)上,他們并沒(méi)有拆穿我的小伎倆并不是說(shuō)他們專(zhuān)業(yè)不強(qiáng),而是在于認(rèn)知偏差。他們并沒(méi)有想到有人會(huì)用真實(shí)照片報(bào)名參加人工智能組別比賽,因此沒(méi)有做任何準(zhǔn)備。誰(shuí)又能想到此事?
然而,問(wèn)題就出在這里:同樣,我們作為一個(gè)社會(huì),也壓根沒(méi)有準(zhǔn)備去質(zhì)疑我們遇到的每一個(gè)圖片、音頻文件或視頻,因?yàn)樵跉v史上我們無(wú)需這樣做,亦或我們不應(yīng)該這樣做??赡苁且?yàn)橘|(zhì)疑眼前所有錯(cuò)誤的事情和任何人,是一件可悲的事情。然而,如果我們希望走在AI前面,那么我們的批判性思考就必須與AI的光速發(fā)展進(jìn)行角逐,這是我們每個(gè)人都應(yīng)該承擔(dān)的責(zé)任。
至于那些與現(xiàn)實(shí)沒(méi)有多大區(qū)別的人工智能照片,我這么做背后的用意與柏林藝術(shù)家鮑里斯?艾爾達(dá)格森去年參賽的照片沒(méi)有太大的區(qū)別,當(dāng)時(shí),他用一張人工智能生成的圖片贏得了索尼全球攝影大賽的創(chuàng)意組獎(jiǎng)項(xiàng),只不過(guò)他是反其道而行之,相當(dāng)于換湯不換藥。人們目前還沒(méi)有為應(yīng)對(duì)人工智能的各種影響做好準(zhǔn)備。
誠(chéng)然,如果人工智能能得到合理的利用,它甚至有助于創(chuàng)意的提升。它確實(shí)在幫助艾爾達(dá)格森進(jìn)行創(chuàng)作。然而,人工智能也會(huì)讓很多創(chuàng)意徒有其表,取決于創(chuàng)意人士如何運(yùn)用,以及我們會(huì)為此推行什么樣的制度框架。一些創(chuàng)意人士已經(jīng)在利用人工智能來(lái)外包一些瑣碎的任務(wù),并釋放相關(guān)資源,讓自己抽身從事真正熱愛(ài)的項(xiàng)目。其他創(chuàng)意人士可能已經(jīng)失去了不少機(jī)會(huì),因?yàn)樵诹私馊斯ぶ悄苌蓛?nèi)容的雇主眼中,他們的作品看起來(lái)流于形式。
不過(guò),這種夸張的、非黑即白的場(chǎng)景中存在著很多灰色空間。例如,如果初創(chuàng)企業(yè)資金緊張,不愿意聘請(qǐng)圖形設(shè)計(jì)師,也可以使用人工智能來(lái)創(chuàng)作免費(fèi)的公司標(biāo)志。因此,這位圖形設(shè)計(jì)師就因此而失去了一份工作。同一家初創(chuàng)企業(yè)可能還會(huì)用人工智能來(lái)生成其博客的通用圖庫(kù),同樣的內(nèi)容如果由圖庫(kù)攝影師完成的話得花不少錢(qián)。不過(guò),這位圖庫(kù)攝影師可能已經(jīng)在使用AI,以更低的價(jià)格來(lái)制作其內(nèi)容。這件事情十分復(fù)雜。一旦我們開(kāi)始討論那些欺騙觀眾的具體內(nèi)容,無(wú)論是有意還是無(wú)意,情形就會(huì)變得更復(fù)雜。例如,AI可能永遠(yuǎn)無(wú)法取代的便是有新聞價(jià)值活動(dòng)的真實(shí)照片。不過(guò),AI可以制造假照片,來(lái)虛構(gòu)電腦之外從未發(fā)生過(guò)的新聞。
人工智能是利大還是弊大?
科技本身沒(méi)有好壞之分,天生就是如此。真正決定其好壞的是人類(lèi)使用科技的方式。如果我們沒(méi)有在廣島扔原子彈,而是利用其來(lái)改變靠近地球行星的軌跡,我們可能會(huì)將其稱(chēng)為神圣炸彈。在推動(dòng)人類(lèi)進(jìn)步或毀滅人類(lèi)方面,人工智能與其他科技沒(méi)有任何區(qū)別。
然而,既然我們未能利用好其顛覆性的前任——社交媒體,那么面對(duì)新一輪的變革,我們應(yīng)該先發(fā)制人。不過(guò)別誤會(huì),我喜歡變革。我的整個(gè)人生都處于變化之中。不過(guò),變化需要適應(yīng)。當(dāng)社交媒體讓互聯(lián)網(wǎng)發(fā)生巨變之時(shí),它最初是通過(guò)連接全球各地的民眾,然后推動(dòng)了阿拉伯之春這類(lèi)革命。非常好!不過(guò)在不久之后,它便成為了散播虛假新聞的元兇,傷害了選舉和民主。
人工智能有望讓這一切看起來(lái)就像是孩子們的惡作劇,相當(dāng)于把大規(guī)模誤導(dǎo)武器放到了任何需要它的人的手中,而且無(wú)需任何背景調(diào)查。如果我們希望獲得標(biāo)記人工智能生成內(nèi)容的能力,那么我們可能有必要為其貼上標(biāo)簽。這一重?fù)?dān)應(yīng)由政府和私營(yíng)領(lǐng)域來(lái)肩負(fù),而且其重要性不亞于民間以及個(gè)人在批判性思維以及質(zhì)疑司空見(jiàn)慣事情方面所應(yīng)肩負(fù)的責(zé)任。我們必須引導(dǎo)年輕人去開(kāi)展這件事情。
反響與深意
人工智能正在重塑數(shù)字領(lǐng)域的格局,受此影響,有關(guān)人工智能對(duì)內(nèi)容未來(lái)及其背后創(chuàng)作者影響的討論也是愈發(fā)激烈,這些創(chuàng)作者包括藝術(shù)家、記者和圖形設(shè)計(jì)師。由此看來(lái),我的惡作劇算是觸碰到了敏感點(diǎn)。全球各地的新聞媒體紛紛報(bào)道此事,而且好的老社交媒體對(duì)其進(jìn)行了放大。鋪天蓋地的積極反饋令我應(yīng)接不暇。這個(gè)做法及其背后的動(dòng)機(jī)獲得了大量支持,不過(guò),最令我感到驚訝和自愧不如的莫過(guò)于賽事組織方對(duì)此事的反饋。
在我告知賽事舉辦方“火烈鳥(niǎo)”照片的真實(shí)情形之后,考慮到需要公平對(duì)待其他使用AI圖片的參賽選手,他們?nèi)∠嘶鹆银B(niǎo)照片的參賽資格。聯(lián)合創(chuàng)始人兼總監(jiān)莉莉·費(fèi)爾曼給我發(fā)了一封郵件,并評(píng)論說(shuō),她非常欣賞此舉深刻的用意,也肯定了相關(guān)聲明的重要性和及時(shí)性。
她寫(xiě)到:“我們希望,此舉能讓眾多擔(dān)心人工智能的攝影師增強(qiáng)這一方面的意識(shí),并為他們帶來(lái)希望?!?/p>
就我自己而言,我希望我的勝利能成為業(yè)界眾多創(chuàng)意人士的勝利,也希望那些擔(dān)心人工智能的人士能真正意識(shí)到這一點(diǎn)。人工智能技術(shù)將常伴我們左右,因此我希望人們能夠以一種造福眾人的方式來(lái)適應(yīng)它,采用它。(財(cái)富中文網(wǎng))
Fortune.com上評(píng)論文章中表達(dá)的觀點(diǎn)僅代表作者個(gè)人觀點(diǎn),并不代表《財(cái)富》雜志的觀點(diǎn)和立場(chǎng)。
譯者:馮豐
審校:夏林
Miles Astray is a multidisciplinary artist combining writing and photography into art activism, inspired by a slow and immersive journey around the world that started in 2012.
As a writer and photographer, the implications of AI-generated content are at least twofold for me. I’m not all that concerned about the impact this disruptive technology might have on my own work though. I have created my personal creative language that the machine simply does not speak. What I am worried about are tectonic societal shifts that could wipe out livelihoods, professions, industries, and democratic pillars overnight.
Don’t worry, I am not prophesizing The End and do not demonize artificial intelligence. But I do think that we need to take the AI debate from public discourse to action as soon as possible. We are not on the cusp of a tidal wave—we are deep-sea-deep in it, and there is no rowing back.
Recently, I entered my work Flamingone (below) into the AI category of 1839 Awards, a prestigious international photo competition. The twist: The picture of a seemingly headless flamingo is as real as the belly scratch the bird is busy with, neck tucked below the torso. I thought if I could win over the award’s high-profile jury with my entry, I would prove that human-made content has not lost its relevance, that Mother Nature and her human interpreters can still beat the machine, and that creativity and emotion are more than just a string of digits.
The jury shortlisted my photo alongside a handful of “real” AI-generated images, which put it in the running for two awards: the jury’s decision and a public vote. In the end, it convinced both the jury and the audience, last week winning the people’s choice award and finishing among the jury’s winners. The picture, as far as I know, is the first real photo to win an AI award.
Point made. Now what?
What’s real and what’s really not
Of course, I felt bad about leading the jury astray, but I thought of them as professionals who might find that this jab at AI and its ethical implications outweighs the ethical implications of deceiving the viewer—which, of course is ironic because that is what AI does. And that’s how this twisted plot started in the first place: In recent years, several AI-generated photos made international headlines by winning photo competitions in which they were not supposed to compete, highlighting the technology’s rapidly increasing capacities.
Somewhere between those headlines, it occurred to me that I could twist the story inside down and upside out the way only a human could and would. Someone might even say that AI gave me the idea, but then someone else should quickly reply that it was the humans behind those machines, using them like visual ventriloquists. The fact that it did convince a jury of industry professionals—including members of the New York Times, Phaidon Press, Getty Images, Centre Pompidou in Paris, Christie’s, and Maddox Gallery—is telling of a few things, and I hope in this very order:
? That nature still outdoes the machine.
? That our brains are not yet attuned to the new normal.
? That AI imagery has become indistinguishable from depictions of reality.
The first one should go without saying. Let me address the other two.
I think the jury is not to blame here. The fact that they didn’t pick up on my little stunt doesn’t speak to a lack of expertise, but to the existence of psychological biases. They were simply not prepared for anybody entering a real photo into the AI category because they didn’t expect it. Why would they?
But that’s the thing: In the same vein, we, as a society, are nowhere near prepared to question every image, audio file, or video we come across, because historically we didn’t have to. And maybe we shouldn’t. Maybe that would be sad, to question everything and everyone that is not right in front of our eyes. But our critical thinking will have to race AI’s lightspeed development if we want to stay ahead of it, and that’s an individual responsibility we all share.
As for AI content that is indiscernible from the real deal, the message behind my stunt is not that different from the one Berlin-based artist Boris Eldagsen sent last year, when he won the Sony World Photo Awards’ creative category with an AI-generated image. Just that he came in from the other end. Same page, different book. We’re not ready for all of AI’s implications.
Sure, if AI is applied the right way, it could even boost creatives. It does help Eldagsen with his work. But it could also make many of them superfluous, depending on how those creatives adapt and what institutional guardrails we decide to put in place. Some creatives already leverage AI to outsource menial tasks and free up resources for their passion projects. Others might already have lost a gig here or there because their work looked superfluous to an employer in light of AI-generated content.
A lot of nuance awaits between the sensationalized black-and-white scenarios. For instance, a cash-strapped startup reluctant to hire a graphic designer can use AI to get a free company logo. But that graphic designer just lost a gig. And maybe that same startup lets AI generate a generic stock image for its blog, which costs a stock photographer a paycheck. Then again, that stock photographer might have already switched to AI to produce their content much cheaper. It’s complex. The slope becomes slippery once we start talking about less generic content that deceives the viewer intentionally or unintentionally. Something AI will likely never be able to replace, for instance, are real photos of a newsworthy event. It can, however, produce fake photos to make up news that never happened outside a CPU.
Will AI do more good or harm?
Technology isn’t inherently good or bad. It isn’t inherently anything. The way humans apply it makes it one thing or another. If we hadn’t dropped the atomic bomb on Hiroshima and had used it instead to deter an asteroid approaching Earth, we might have called it something like the Holy Bomb. In its potential to advance humanity or wreak havoc, AI is no different from many other technologies.
But where we lagged behind with its disruptive predecessor social media, we should get ahead of the change this time around. Don’t get me wrong, I love change. My whole life is change. But change calls for adaptation. When social media turned the internet upside down, it started out by connecting people all over the world and facilitating revolutions like the Arab Spring. Great! But it wasn’t long before it became instrumental to spreading fake news that hurt elections and democracies.
AI has the potential to make all that look like a kid’s prank, putting a weapon of mass-misinformation into the hands of anyone who wants it—no background check required. If we want the ability to flag AI-generated content, we’ll probably need to tag it. The onus would be on governments and the private sector, and almost as important as the civil and individual responsibility of critical thinking and questioning the apparently obvious. We’ll have to educate young people to do this.
Reaction to my stunt and what it means
With AI-generated content remodeling the digital landscape while sparking ever-fiercer debates about its implications for the future of content and the creators behind it—including artists, journalists, and graphic designers—my shenanigan hit a nerve. News outlets all over the world picked up the story, and good old social media amplified it. The overwhelmingly positive reactions have, well, overwhelmed me. There has been tremendous support for the idea and the statement behind it, but none has surprised and humbled me more than the reaction I received from the award organizers themselves.
After I revealed the true nature of Flamingone to them—and after they disqualified the entry out of fairness to contestants with actual AI images—cofounder and director Lily Fierman reached out with an email and remarked that she appreciates the powerful message and that it was an important and timely statement.
“We hope this will bring awareness (and a message of hope) to many photographers worried about AI,” she wrote.
As for me, I hope that my win was also a win for the many creatives out there, or really for anyone worried about AI. This technology is here to stay, so I hope we can adapt in ways—and adopt it in ways—that are beneficial for all.
The opinions expressed in Fortune.com commentary pieces are solely the views of their authors and do not necessarily reflect the opinions and beliefs of Fortune.