Human and the Tool

What is your relationship with AI and Creative?  

AI and I became fast friends. I initially used it to understand the technology, and later incorporated it into a personal project. But I quickly saw that it can, will and would change our industry… for the better. There are a few undeniable truths in recent years in the industry. Timelines have shrunk and creative teams feel the fun has left the building. While these may not be directly connected, I believe AI can positively impact both. AI allows us to be nimble, be a little more playful and express our creativity quickly, which can help us rock round one reviews, and beyond.  

What ways are you implementing AI in your work for clients? 

I use it in a range of ways. Like I mentioned earlier round one reviews, and ideation, are a perfect place. AI is the antidote for a blank page. It allows us to visualize ideas really quickly. We can see if they work without spending hours on photoshop or sketching it out. But it can also help us think and see differently. If you learn to really control it and bend it you’ll find new things that can become wonderful sparks for concepts. I should add that I’m still a fan of sketches. Use the tool that works for you but don’t be scared off by new tools.  

AI doesn’t stop at ideation though. We can use it in production and even tactics. And once we mix it with other tech like AR the possibilities are truly infinite. I also use LLMs to go back and forth in ideation phase to help me make sure the story is coming through well. 

What sort of challenges have you seen in creative with the rise in popularity of AI?  

One challenge is adoption. It surprises me how few creatives are actually using AI. And those that do are using it at a surface level only, mostly for stock photo replacement. Another is understanding or lack of. Clients are looking to us to be the SMEs on this and to figure out ways to use it in tactics. But if we don’t fully understand how to use AI, whether it be language or art, we won’t be able to pitch tactics that can actually work. The final challenge is fear. Whether it be fear of it taking our jobs, I really don’t think it’s anywhere close to being as creative as we are. Or fear of copyright. I think that’s an easy solution. I am pretty vocal about not using artist, author or brand names in a prompt which solves a lot of the problems there. I do think brands should always ask their lawyers what their AI POV is, and we can help with that.  

What programs are you using?  

My main program is Midjourney, which is a static image tool. They’ve hinted at bringing video and 3D into it which is exciting. I find that one to be the most artistic of the platforms and you can get a nice film quality out of it.  

DallE 3 is pretty good as well. It’s a little more straight forward and on the nose but I use that in the slim times that I can’t get what I need from Midjourney. 

Lastly, for images, there is Stable Diffusion. I play with it but I’m less of a fan for images. But I do think you can do some great animation with it.  

Until very recently video didn’t have the fidelity I’m looking for, but I play a lot with Pika and Runay ML. They seem to have the least amount of wonkiness to it. However, OpenAI just announced SoraAI which is beautiful. Yet, they all still lack the ability of total control of movement.  

Language many people see ChatGPT as the king. But I usually default to Claude.ai as I feel for the things they can both do Claude gives me better results.  

What advice would you give a creative who wants to start using AI?  

Just use it. Get your 10,000 hours in. I’ve taught hundreds of creatives how to use AI and this is what separates the great people from the rest. Find one program to master. For art like I said I’m a fan of Midjourney. I’ve made over 75,000 images made in that so far compared to just low thousands in the others. But for other people it's DallE, Stable Diffusion or even StarryAi. Learn that one, master it then try others. Same with LLMs. Though while I default to Claude, I feel the new features of ChatGPT plus make it more valuable to most.  

How have you gotten clients up to speed with AI?  

For me it’s about taking them along for the ride. Informing them when we're using it in mockups, explaining the rationale, and detailing how it will impact the final output. Will we continue with AI and use that as our art or will we use that as our mockup tool and hire a photographer or illustrator to execute. I'm also open to and enjoy discussing with clients and their peers how AI can be used in our work and in their daily lives. I love going into client creative teams and teaching them how to use AI for their process too.