I don’t think there’s really a “demand” per se. It seems to me like the vast vast majority of AI “art” and text is spam. Many of these users seem to be using cheap/free versions of whatever LLM or image generators.
That viewpoint is extremely short sighted. You’re missing the field for the trees. Open source models that people run on their local hardware with open weights absolutely do exist and function well. As an example of demand, I personally have a DnD group that uses it for token generation. It gives a far deeper sense of immersion for our custom campaigns where we would otherwise not be able to afford to commission custom imagery, and yes these are generated locally on an m1 mac mini. People viewing it as a replacement for custom commissioned art are, at least with its current and foreseeable capabilities, incorrect in their assumption. It’s merely an augmentation and tool that fills niche low-cost low-“risk” voids. I assure you, for example, that there is absolutely some kid out there who has generated an image of either their imaginary friend or custom super hero. This has likely brought them great joy, especially if they’re unable to otherwise embody their idea due to lack of skill or funding. You have to look at the tool from all angles. A car, in isolation, is a multi-ton inheritia machine capable of unspeakable atrocities, yet we cohabitate with them every single day because we understand life is complex, there are benefits to doing so, and a single view of a tool does not reflect it’s reality.
I don’t think “some kid” experiencing “great joy” at AI slop is worth the spam from scammers and environmental impacts.
Also, the majority of people using AI are not running it locally. If people were running it locally, on low power to preserve the environment, with content that artists consented to have trained, to use exclusively for non-commercial use, I wouldn’t have a problem with it.
But that isn’t reality.
Cars are dangerous, yet we live in a society that…
Cars are dangerous, that’s why they can only be used by licensed operators (both for safety and environmental impact), are heavily regulated, and still have problems coming from overreliance that would have been easier to solve before we built infrastructure around them.
It’s why we’ve seen things like walkable cities and public transit come back as popular ideas.
I think you’re aiming for perfect over better, and honestly I don’t think you’re going to make much headway in that effort, especially when you’re disregarding the joy of children but you do you.
I don’t think there’s really a “demand” per se. It seems to me like the vast vast majority of AI “art” and text is spam. Many of these users seem to be using cheap/free versions of whatever LLM or image generators.
OpenAI is by far the most popular, but also said that even on the most expensive $200/month plan, they are losing money.
Is this “demand” going to exist if and when they inevitably raise the price?
If and when Facebook makes changes to how they monetize posts, will the shrimp Jesus spammers move on to the next scheme?
Will the businesses using AI for customer service and data entry keep using it if it costs more than using human employees?
This whole “industry” is teetering on a knifes edge.
That viewpoint is extremely short sighted. You’re missing the field for the trees. Open source models that people run on their local hardware with open weights absolutely do exist and function well. As an example of demand, I personally have a DnD group that uses it for token generation. It gives a far deeper sense of immersion for our custom campaigns where we would otherwise not be able to afford to commission custom imagery, and yes these are generated locally on an m1 mac mini. People viewing it as a replacement for custom commissioned art are, at least with its current and foreseeable capabilities, incorrect in their assumption. It’s merely an augmentation and tool that fills niche low-cost low-“risk” voids. I assure you, for example, that there is absolutely some kid out there who has generated an image of either their imaginary friend or custom super hero. This has likely brought them great joy, especially if they’re unable to otherwise embody their idea due to lack of skill or funding. You have to look at the tool from all angles. A car, in isolation, is a multi-ton inheritia machine capable of unspeakable atrocities, yet we cohabitate with them every single day because we understand life is complex, there are benefits to doing so, and a single view of a tool does not reflect it’s reality.
I don’t think “some kid” experiencing “great joy” at AI slop is worth the spam from scammers and environmental impacts.
Also, the majority of people using AI are not running it locally. If people were running it locally, on low power to preserve the environment, with content that artists consented to have trained, to use exclusively for non-commercial use, I wouldn’t have a problem with it.
But that isn’t reality.
Cars are dangerous, that’s why they can only be used by licensed operators (both for safety and environmental impact), are heavily regulated, and still have problems coming from overreliance that would have been easier to solve before we built infrastructure around them.
It’s why we’ve seen things like walkable cities and public transit come back as popular ideas.
I think you’re aiming for perfect over better, and honestly I don’t think you’re going to make much headway in that effort, especially when you’re disregarding the joy of children but you do you.
Local models already won.