Agency Perspectives on AI, Part One: Visuals

Even aside from the natural human tendency to fear that which may render us obsolete, there are reasons to maintain a more skeptical attitude toward AI. For one thing, AI programs tend to execute generative tasks by pulling information from the internet—and the internet is not always the best source.

“AI generator tools don’t have a focus on morality or truth,” said Compass Creative Director Maggie Stark. “They are just looking to export content as instructed. The tools are only as good as the learning and instructions that they are given, which means AI can inherently reflect biases of its programmers.”

She elaborates: “Templated tools that create multiple options or iterations of visual layouts like ad or video creators have less of these issues because they are more controlled. However, they often produce template-like results which can blend into the background and lack unique branding.”

Keeley Smith, graphic designer for Compass, expressed concerns about the lack of a human perspective in work performed by AI tools, particularly in the context of meeting a client’s creative needs.

“Maybe you’ve overlooked a crucial issue with your brand or product that needs to be addressed,” she said, “but you won’t know any better unless you sit down and talk through it. Since these tools pull from existing materials, I also fear that AI-generated imagery will homogenize branding and detract from the variety of unique images and voices we see on the shelf.”