A case currently before the US Court of Appeals is to decide whether artificial intelligences should have patent rights over the processes they were used to design. OpenAI has announced that artists using its new DALL-E beta software can sell the work: “Starting today, users get full usage rights to market the images they create with DALL·E, including the right to reprint them. , sell and merchandise. This includes the images they generated during the research preview.” (July 20, 2022)
First, here’s what DALL-E can do:
Some worry about its impact on arts jobs:
OpenAI’s press release for DALL-E 2 markets the advanced technology as a “powerful creative tool” that will accelerate and inspire the creative process. But as some have already begun to point out, the ability to commercialize DALL-E 2 will likely have a pretty big impact on the creative industries, and some of the resulting ramifications may not be good.
“This is crazy,” wrote one Twitter user who claims to have used the software. “I’ve used him quite a bit and his understanding of composition, lighting and color is mind-blowing. We have to think about so many implications of how this tool is used and what it means for artists/creators now that it’s opening up rights.”
Maggie Harrison, “OpenAI says it’s OK to sell images made with DALL-E 2” in Futurism (22 July 2022)
Others see the potential for greater artistic productivity:
So far, this has not happened. People who have been granted early access to DALL-E have discovered that it enhances human creativity rather than making it obsolete. Benjamin Von Wong, an artist who creates installations and sculptures, says it has actually increased his productivity. “DALL-E is a wonderful tool for someone like me who can’t draw,” says Von Wong, who uses the tool to explore ideas that could later be incorporated into physical artwork. “Instead of needing to outline concepts, I can just generate them through different quick phrases.”
Will Knight, “When AI makes art, humans provide the creative spark” in Wired (July 13, 2022)
This is how various artists have used it.
Robert J. Marks, author of the just-published Non-Computable You, believes that OpenAI’s approach is legally correct. He told Mind Matters News,
AI-generated images should have no more copyright than Google search engine results.
DALL-E 2 is an amazing AI tool. But in the end, it’s a tool and nothing more. Generate stunning images. But, in a smart call from the US Copyright Office, AI-generated art cannot be protected. So OpenAI’s concession to use DALL-E 2 images for free is not as altruistic as it sounds.
In my book Non-Computable You, we use an image from the website ThisPersonDoesNotExist.com where artificial intelligence generates realistic images of people’s faces. Although a remarkable achievement, these images cannot be copyrighted. For my book, we cited the source, but copyright permission was not required.
No AI creativity here.
In the other room, a bouquet of flowers can look real. But closer inspection may reveal that they are artificial. There is no dirt or water for the stems and the flower petals do not feel real. It is the case of artificial intelligence. Across the room, AI can feel real. But closer inspection reveals that it is artificial. Hence the term artificial intelligence. Under the hood of the DALL-E 2 is a complex and beautiful number cruncher. But any credit for creativity belongs to the ingenuity of the computer programmers, not the AI.
Some perspective: OpenAI, co-founded by Elon Musk, caused a stir a couple of years ago with the GPT-3 typewriter that was supposed to decimate the news industry and drown us all in fake news The mainstream news industry is indeed in big trouble, but for reasons unrelated to GPT-3. And fake news remains a crowded market in which even AI struggles to find a niche. So artists, use DALL-e or not as it works with your style, but stick with your art.
Note: DALL-E is not completely free: “Each DALL·E user will receive 50 free credits during the first month of use and 15 free credits each month thereafter. Each credit can be used for an original DALL·E indicator generation, which returns four images, or an edit or variation request, which returns three images. But it is quite cheap.
Mind Matters News is on the first list of a million to get one and we’ll get back to you.
We also recommend reading: Should AI be granted patents on the designs it helps develop? This is an argument currently before the United States Court of Appeals. The argument is based on a misunderstanding of what artificial intelligence (AI) actually does when it moves through many iterations of a design process. (Robert J. Marks)