Generative AI lets you consume Creation
Consumption versus Creation.
I’ve long been conscious of two contrasting categories of pastimes – those that consume, and those that create.
Consumption is fast. Consumption is passive.
Consumption is easy.
Consumption in today’s world is limitless, as there are an infinite number of sources that each provide an infinite amount of content. It’s easy to blow this into a dystopian image of people who never leave their couch, but in many cases consumption as a hobby is harmless. People learn about the world, are exposed to new ideas, feel delight or shock or compassion or curiosity or anything, really, at whatever they encounter. And that’s fine.
But consumption is, I think, fulfilling only on a superficial level.
Creation is slow. Creation is active.
Creation is hard.
There are far fewer creators than consumers, because it is demanding of time and effort. Creation is technically limited by your ability, although in reality there is so much that you can accomplish with only the slightest amount of skill if you allow yourself the challenge.
Creation can be fulfilling on a truly deep level, proportional to the amount of time and effort you pour into it. I think this can be felt by others, too, because there is a feeling of awe that is evoked when interacting with a work that is full of care.
I’ve always taken pride in being a creator, in my own humble way. I’ve tried to be conscious of the amount of time I spend consuming versus creating, because it is easy to slip into habits of excessive consumption. I’ve learned that I tend to be happiest when I am able to devote time to creative pastimes.
Generative AI changes things
Of the many things that generative AI is changing about our world, one is allowing people to consume the process of creation.
Type some words, hit a button, and something novel and interesting comes out. This is consumption. It generates an infinite number of things that can be consumed, each one tailored specifically for you and what you desire. It take minimal effort, and you can interact with it to your heart’s content. This is a consumer’s dream.
The novel twist is that it also feels an awful lot like creation. You imagined something, put in some set amount of effort, and now the thing exists. Because you willed it to be so. You can show it to people, and explain that it is yours.
It strips away the slow, active, hard parts of creation, and serves it to you in a fast, passive, and easy way. You are consuming the experience of creation.
How do I feel about all this?
I’m really not sure.
I’m not writing this from a high moral position. I use generative AI at work and in my daily life, and these insights came from recognizing the dynamic at play within myself.
I feel like I should feel appalled. That the experience of creation is cheapened and commodified. That I am selling my (limited) skills as a creator short, and jumping into an exo-suit that will only serve to atrophy my muscles. That too many people will start to assume that creation is, or should be, fast and easy, leading to a sharp decline in craftsmanship and overall quality of a technological life.
But I have to admit that it is so much fun. I can generate useful tools that provide real value to me and my family. These productions can feel great to use, and my pride of them does feel justified, because it is a good solution to a problem that I recognized, and I did put attention to the details that matter to me.
I feel empowered as a creator like I haven’t been since I was learning HTML/CSS for my GeoCities site. Small chops for a small world. The world is so much bigger now, and these big AI chops are so satisfying.