AI Won't Help You Tell Your Story

In my last post, I covered how AI is changing a lot of things in the creative industry, namely:

• Automating business logic and bringing disparate industries together
• Making a range of creative processes usable (maybe not accessible) for everyday people
• Facilitating deep contextual work without long lead times

Here's why:

1️⃣ AI is just a tool

Creators still need to make high-level decisions while learning more about the tools they use, so they don't fall prey to their limitations.

If you're a creator, you'll still need to understand:

Narrative structure
Emotional connection
Clear communication

And not just to an LLM—but to your clients and end users, without any assistance.

2️⃣ AI Model Bias Will Shape (and Limit) Your Impact on the Viewer

The capability of AI may improve dramatically in the next 30 years, but there will always be hard limits to what any individual model can do.

I like to think of LLMs as a human language 'interface' for the collective knowledge of a group. If you train a model on one group's knowledge, it will only ever be a fit for the members of that group.

Bias is inherent in the training data. As a creator, it's on you to be aware of:

✅ Which tools you use
✅ How training data impacts creative output
✅ What biases affect your own work

3️⃣ AI Can Make Bad Decisions for You

As a technical artist, there will always be a temptation to outsource your thinking and decision-making to AI.

It has the ability to cleanly pluck information from across many different sources, making you feel a bit smarter than you really are. We've already become 'cyborgs' in the way we work, but:

❌ Don't fall for the trap of delegating your creative process.

Why?

Your value as an artist lies in the creative choices you make. This is a muscle you can develop, and if you plan on having a brand long-term, you won't stand out.

It takes focus, organization, and an active role in the creative process to make sure your content stays on track and delivers what you originally intended—AI assistant or not.

⚠️ Don't put your career at risk by having no input in what you put out.

The creation process is the story

Narrative in your content has everything to do with the choices you make. You won't be able to connect with your audience if you aren't still getting swept up in the details.

Here are my suggestions:

🔹 Use AI as a collaborator, not a decision-maker – Let it assist you with bringing in context, depth of detail, and scale to your vision.

🔹 Continue to study your toolkit – Know its limitations, strengthen your discernment, and develop your own voice.

🔹 Edit, Edit, Edit – Every step of the way, you have the opportunity to review, discuss, and modify. Consider what parts of the process you enjoy the most and stay involved.