AI should extend, not replace, human creativity

KUALA LUMPUR: Artificial intelligence (AI) should not be seen as a replacement for human intelligence but as a powerful tool that can extend creativity, productivity and human potential.

Internet marketing company Artisense Online Sdn Bhd director Sheena Lai said AI could generate ideas and complete tasks quickly, but human creativity remained rooted in emotions, experiences, memories and personal perspectives.

"Creativity is not simply about producing something new. It is about seeing something differently," she said.

Lai said AI could help overcome a creative block by offering multiple ideas and possible directions, but it could not determine which idea was personally meaningful.

"AI can give us 10 ideas in seconds, but it cannot decide which idea actually means something to us," she said.

She said people should also remain critical of AI-generated content as the technology could produce inaccurate or vague information while sounding confident.

"That is precisely why human judgment matters more today, not less," she said.

Lai likened AI to technological tools that had transformed how people worked without making human skills obsolete.

"A calculator did not make mathematicians useless, and a camera did not make artists obsolete," she said.

She said the same principle applied to AI, which should be used to complement rather than replace human thinking.

"The smartest people are not turning their brains off for AI. They are steering AI with intention instead of trying to compete against it," she said.

Lai said AI could provide endless possibilities, while humans brought purpose, emotion and individual perspectives to the creative process.

"AI can provide endless possibilities, but humans bring the essential purpose, the authentic feeling and the human point of view," she said.

She said the key was not choosing between the human brain and AI, but knowing how to use both effectively.

"Use your brain, use your imagination and experience, and use the AI next to you when it helps.

"Let AI do what it does best. And let humans do what only humans can do — decide what is worth creating," she said.

Lastly, she posed a question at the heart of the debate over AI and creativity: 'Was this content created by her or by AI?'