The 2023 version of the Cannes Lions Worldwide Pageant of Creativity could also be remembered because the “disconnect present.” There’s the beer model whose inclusive, award-winning advertising and marketing marketing campaign prompted a devastating boycott. There’s the expertise sector, whose pull-back on advertising and marketing spend and headcount is being cheered by Wall Road. However the greatest disconnect at Cannes is enjoying out largely in between classes—the one which pits human creators towards AI.
The rise of ChatGPT, Midjourney and different AI platforms are forcing a reckoning in inventive industries, and for good motive. They do so much, and numerous what they do may be construed by the undiscerning eye as “inventive work.” But when we’re being sincere with ourselves, we have to acknowledge that creativity has been hurting for a very long time. Having judged previous editions of the Cannes Lions, I’ve seen my share of outstanding, inspiring work. However I’ve additionally seen an business struggling to innovate. Greatest practices are accepted with out query, and few are courageous sufficient to pioneer new ones. As an alternative we resign ourselves to use the model playbook to the deliverable and gather our examine. The place did the wild, experimental considering that drew us to this work go? Is that even the best query?
Fairly than get depressed, I’ve merely moved on, each in my observe and in how I lead my group. And the factor that’s liberated us—that saves us from dwelling prior to now, making use of the identical drained approaches to profound new challenges—is identical factor that received Cannes so labored up: AI.
Generative AI is prompting numerous worry—each for designers’ livelihoods and types’ IP. However once more, let’s be sincere with ourselves: If we feed prompts into ChatGPT, does it give us a brand new product concept? If we do the identical in Midjourney, will we get a brand new model id? AI makes me hopeful, not fearful, as a result of it doesn’t give me the reply. It does, nevertheless, assist me and my group arrive sooner at provocations we will then interrogate and discover to get at our reply—it frees our minds to do the true inventive work. AI is the breakthrough of our time, if not of all time, and we’d be unhealthy companions if we disadvantaged purchasers of its promise.
