One of the most remarkable outcomes of highly advanced scientific technology is artificial intelligence, which has now moved beyond being a mere machine to entering the realm of creation, once considered a uniquely human domain. Paintings created by AI are exhibited, novels written by AI are published, and music composed by AI garners public attention. While we applaud these groundbreaking achievements, a crucial question emerges: Who owns this creation(Hugenholtz and Quintais., 2021)?
One of the most remarkable outcomes of highly advanced scientific technology is artificial intelligence, which has now moved beyond being a mere machine to entering the realm of creation, once considered a uniquely human domain. Paintings created by AI are exhibited, novels written by AI are published, and music composed by AI garners public attention. While we applaud these groundbreaking achievements, a crucial question emerges: Who owns this creation(Hugenholtz and Quintais., 2021)?
This article explores the cultural and social disruptions triggered by AI-generated works, with a focus on how these creations challenge the distinctiveness of human creativity and test the boundaries of freedom of expression.
1. A Society Where Creative Authorship Becomes Ambiguous
The quality of AI-generated work is becoming increasingly indistinguishable from human-made creations. In visual art, music, fiction, and even poetry, AI mimics human styles through vast datasets, producing what we now refer to as “creative works.” However, the fundamental issue here is: Who is the creator(Caspersen., 2008)? AI does not feel emotions, nor does it possess a will or motivation to create. When such outputs are consumed as “art,” a term long reserved for human endeavor, society must reconsider the very meaning of creation. This ambiguity leads to confusion over copyright, the authority of creators, and cultural identity
2. The Displacement of Human Creators
Industries are rapidly turning to AI for content production due to its speed and cost-effectiveness. This shift particularly threatens the livelihoods of human creators such as freelance writers, designers, and musicians. Art is not just a product. It is the outcome of personal perspective, emotion, and lived experience(Issak., 2021). As these human expressions lose their place, cultural diversity and depth may erode, reducing the richness of collective human imagination.
3. Value Clashes and the Rise of Censorship
AI-generated content can also provoke political and cultural tensions. There is a high risk of biased or offensive material targeting certain ethnicities, genders, or ideologies. Additionally, growing concerns around managing and regulating AI content inevitably lead to debates over censorship(Vikalp Thapliyal and Pranita Thapliyal., 2024). Who gets to decide what is harmful? If governments or platforms begin to restrict expression under the pretext of regulating AI, we risk descending into new forms of surveillance and control masked as technological management.
AI undoubtedly enhances convenience and democratizes artistic creation, opening new creative possibilities. However, this advancement raises fundamental questions: What is creation? What does it mean for humans? When non-human entities increasingly occupy creative and cultural spaces, we must critically examine what values are at stake.
The proliferation of AI-generated content is not merely a technological issue; it clashes with core values such as human creativity, freedom of expression, and social responsibility. When the origin and accountability of creative output become unclear, society may face the misuse of freedom to spread discrimination, misinformation, or harm.
It is no longer sufficient to marvel at what technology can do; we must now consider where it should go, and what responsibilities it must bear. Creative freedom is inseparably tied to human dignity, and ensuring it is neither destroyed nor replaced by technology is an ethical obligation of our time.
Reference list
Caspersen, N. (2008) ‘Between Puppets and Independent Actors: Kin-state Involvement in the Conflicts in Bosnia, Croatia and Nagorno Karabakh’, Ethnopolitics, 7(4), pp. 357–372. Available at: https://doi.org/10.1080/17449050701618546.
Hugenholtz, P.B. and Quintais, J.P. (2021) ‘Copyright and Artificial Creation: Does EU Copyright Law Protect AI-Assisted Output?’, IIC – International Review of Intellectual Property and Competition Law, 52, pp. 1190–1216. Available at: https://doi.org/10.1007/s40319-021-01115-0.
Issak, A. (2021) ‘Artistic Autonomy in AI Art’, arXiv (Cornell University) [Preprint]. Available at: https://doi.org/10.48550/arxiv.2111.04437.
Vikalp Thapliyal and Pranita Thapliyal (2024) ‘AI and Creativity: Exploring the Intersection of Machine Learning and Artistic Creation’, International Journal for Research Publication and Seminars, 15(1). Available at: https://doi.org/10.36676/jrps.v15.i1.06.
