Are AI YouTubers the Future?
Ever since AI started reshaping our creative landscape, there's been a lot of talk of both worry and excitement among online content creators, such as YouTubers. From Aitana, the first AI-generated online influencer, to AI podcasts like "The Joe Rogan AI Experience", it's clear we're navigating a new era.
The other day, Steven Bartlett (entrepreneur and podcaster), likened AI podcasts to a "downward opportunity" for YouTube creators, similar to how the car was for the horse industry in the early 20th century.
Recently, OpenAI (the company that created ChatGPT) announced their video generation AI, a text-to-video model, called Sora. Though it's not out yet, the anticipation alone is stirring up a mix of excitement and apprehension.
So, where does this leave YouTube and other content creators? Are we going to be replaced by AI soon? Or should we start using AI ourselves?
The very topic of AI's impact on creativity is discussed in a generated interview between the generated versions of Joe Rogan and Sam Altman (CEO of OpenAI).
Kenneth Cukier, Deputy Executive Editor at The Economist and the author of Big Data: A Revolution That Will Transform How We Work, Live, and Think, argued that humans have more flexibility than AI and a deeper purpose (a point not far from the one made in The Joe Rogan AI Experience podcast). Therefore, we need humans to convey human thoughts and experiences.
For now, this is true. Yet, with AI stepping into roles as AI boyfriends, girlfriends, and personal companions (e.g. Pi and Replika), even experts cannot predict how AI will affect us in the long run. Will we become more accustomed to AI-generated content?
Moreover, AI is becoming increasingly sophisticated at mimicking human nuances.
A few months ago, Esther Perel, a world-renowned psychotherapist and author of books on human relationships, discussed an AI therapist which was created to mimic her.
So, should video content creators all panic until OpenAI's video generation AI comes out, then immediately start generating YouTube videos?
I don’t think so.
First of all, technology is not yet near replacing human ideas, creativity, delivery, and connection. Even the creator of The Joe Rogan AI Experience said:
“Apart from listening to the podcast because of its technological advancement, there’s no point. It’s just wasted time.”
Instead, let's view AI as a tool to enhance our productivity, not as a replacement for our creativity and connection with the audience.
What AI can do is democratise a lot of the expensive production technology that takes time to master.
AI podcast editing tools can simplify tasks like removing background noise or clarifying mumbled words. Generated summaries (e.g., Hacker News Recap) can be a nice addition to your creative content.
But the core of what we do remains distinctly ours, including:
Creative content with a personal voice to which people can relate
Sharing our unique human experiences with each other
And finally, creating human connections and communities through our content and real-life events.
At least for now. (More on this in a coming post)
As Kenneth Cukier said, it's time to "level up our humanity." Take AI as a further motivation to create creative and genuine content, that is not easy to be generated, and connects with our humanity.
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