Has the horse already bolted?
After AI helped him create Antoni Gaudí-inspired household appliances, Thinkerbell’s Marcus Byrne asks how we can harness the technology for positive change in the industry…or if the horse has already bolted?
So recently, a personal project took me by surprise, it went viral and was published on Forbes, Trendhunter, Designboom, Cool Hunting and landed with some printed pieces in Germany and an interview and full page printed article in the Guardian UK.
The idea was pretty simple. We live in an age of Apple and Tesla where minimal design has taken charge and logos stripped back to live on mobile devices.
I challenged the idea, asking Artificial Intelligence the question: What if Antoni Gaudí inspired the design of regular boring household appliances? The results were fascinating but also deeply disturbing.
I’m really interested to see how this pans out.
There are studies that show that we connect less emotionally with films that use lots of special effects, and people theorise this is because while it’s stunning, we can tell the difference between what’s real and what has been generated. But to your point, those movies that layer on the special effects are often the biggest hits at the box office anyway, so it’s not really a barrier to AI creating for the masses.
The one barrier I see to AI replacing musicians or actors though, even at the more superficial, mass consumption end of the spectrum, is the fandom that exists around these people. People can’t fawn over an AI like they can over flesh and blood. Tabloids can’t follow them around with cameras. But, if AI is given a human form, similar to what we see with virtual influencers, we might be in trouble…
Well, looks like my understanding of AI has increased by a whole 300% in the last 10mins, thanks for breaking it down
Marcus, great posting.
(Wrote that all myself as well .. three words is my limit though.)
They will never take my job. My magic is my own.
These pictures are my new fantasy so thank you for their creation! As a long time Gaudi fan (also obsessed with Barcelona) your (AI’s) take on Gaudi-esque home appliances has me dreaming of a kitchen too pretty and artistic to cook in.
Thanks for breaking down the whole concept too – I know more now, but still so much more to go. Time to make a coffee with my boring silver kettle while I ponder this.