Campus Battle On Generative AI Usage
When generative AI “art” first came onto the scene, it seemed pretty universally hated.
It was fun to mess around with in the early Dall-E days, with ugly amalgamations of things that seem early familiar yet incorrect, and uncanny valet. It couldn’t do text, and most people would find the notion of using it for a log or poster ridiculous.
Then, for a short while, once the technology developed, it was pretty much a consensus that using AI for posters or logos was just bad. Taking jobs from graphic designers to create lifeless, universally bland AI images was just considered icky. The environmental impacts of AI were brought up in the comment section of almost any clearly AI-generated image,
Content creators were shamed for using AI filters on TikTok.
AI slop is still generally disliked, but people seem ok, or at least apathetic to AI in posters, advertisements, and social media posts.
Walking around the UW campus, you’ll see many clubs with posters that scream ‘AI-generated.’ Pizza parties will be advertised with posters that make no logical sense once given a closer look. Event announcements on the standees in the union have that clear AI shine to it. Pool balls on the billiard club’s posters have numbers and color patterns that make no sense.
Giving up on doing your own homework is one thing. Many people have done it to different degrees. It could be a helping hand or a source for complete plagiarism. It may leave a bad taste in many people’s mouths, but in the end, you’re really only affecting yourself.
AI “art” generation is a completely different thing. It shoves the AI slop down any passerby’s throat, making it impossible to avoid.
It shows how quickly the moral standards can change once the ease of using the tool increases. Even if you dislike what you are doing, the temptation of convenience is too easy. Every company has shoved AI tools down our throats.
Even typing this, I see AI Grammarly recommendations. I signed up for this service before the AI rollout, and it has only gotten worse in quality.
We have given up the fight against AI. The battle was too much, and so we changed our morals to fit with the new way of life forced upon us by billionaires who are passing around money ripped from our data without our consent.
