I am sure the term artificial intelligence (AI) is not new to anyone. It has significantly revolutionized how we as a society consume and access information, but recently a new trend has taken over the internet and has generated a lot of public discourse. The social media trend involved using AI image generators to transform regular mundane photos into art styles reminiscent of popular shows and intellectual property with little to no copyright issues. Users experimented with different styles such as Simpsons, Family Guy, South Park and other mediums, but Studio Ghibli proved to be most popular, as people felt more gravitated towards its unique and nostalgia-based aesthetic.

Now although this trend seems fairly harmless, it poses significant questions surrounding the dangers of AI, specifically concerning the future of art and artists as a whole. The cofounder of Studio Ghibli, Hayo Miyazaki has already publicly shared his opinions regarding the trend. During an interview with Far Out magazine, Miyazaki states “I strongly feel that this is an insult to life itself”, “I can’t watch this stuff and find [it] interesting. Whoever creates this stuff has no idea what pain is whatsoever. I am utterly disgusted. If you really want to make creepy stuff, you can go ahead and do it. I would never wish to incorporate this technology into my work at all”.

Even fans of the iconic studio are appalled by the trend, calling it an insult to life itself and completely goes against everything Mr. Miyazaki’s work stands for. Believe it or not, they are not wrong. Studio Ghibli films often reflect the element of natural beauty, and their warm aesthetic is designed to perfectly capture emotional depth, something AI cannot replicate. Now on the one hand experts might argue that generative AI offers a well-versed personalized art experience to the general public, making artistic expression more simplified and accessible. People can easily create whatever they want with any art style specifically catered towards their personalized needs, not to mention significantly reducing time and effort. While it is impossible to undermine these benefits, I personally believe this ultimately takes away the essence of what makes art so special. Art is meant to be difficult, it is meant to be hard, it is meant to be frustrating, but that is the beauty of it. Continuously learning from our mistakes and perfecting our craft until we are satisfied. That determination to keep persevering, to keep growing despite setback after setback, is what makes not just art special but life itself, it is what it means to be human. To throw all of that away for the sake of instant gratification is indeed an insult on life itself.

So, what does this mean for future artists? Is AI destined to take over and destroy creativity as we know it? As far-fetched as these questions may seem, AI has already collectively replaced the jobs of thousands of artists in the animation industry. While there is hope as the current state of AI is not advanced enough to be solely relied on to produce art.  Unless these AI companies decide to take preventative measures regarding the dangers of generative AI, this threat will inevitably continue to grow and spread to all forms of media.