Generative AI is a type of artificial intelligence that can create things like text, images, music, and videos within minutes! It does this by learning from existing examples and mimicking patterns (pretty much like a super-smart creative assistant that takes what it has learned and comes up with something new)!
And most of us can attest to the fact that AI has gone from a concept that once felt like a gazillion light-years away to being available right at our fingertips.
But one question we still need to ask ourselves is, is all of this simply too good to be true? Is generative AI the gift that keeps on giving? Or, is it a double-edged sword in digital disguise?
Join us as we answer these burning questions, as well as look at all the pros and cons that come with it.
Historical Summary Of Where It All Began
The story of generative AI dates back to the 1950s when Alan Turing introduced the Turing Test. In short, this was basically a way to measure whether a machine could think like a human. Around the same time, scientists began exploring artificial neural networks (ANNs), which laid the foundation of modern machine learning.
By the 2000s, researchers developed smarter models like support vector machines (SVMs), decision trees, and Bayesian networks, allowing AI to move beyond simple rule-following to generating insights.
Drum roll please, because in 2018 can the ultimate breakthrough and OpenAI, the first Generative Pre-trained Transformer, making AI-generated text possible, was launched. This was followed by the launch of DALL·E that created images from text, and GPT-3 being introduced in 2020.
A Quick Look At The Pros
Probably one of the biggest benefits generative AI offers is its ability to whip up blogs, social media captions, emails, images, product descriptions, the lot, fast.
You can just imagine the huge difference this technology makes in smaller companies with smaller budgets. If we look at some of the stats, last year, about 71% of organisations confessed that they regularly use generative AI in at least one business function. Go figure. And when it comes to said smaller businesses, 98% use AI-enabled tools to enhance efficiency and reduce costs. There you have it.
Efficiency and cost aside, AI can also help you if you are struggling with a classic case of writer’s block. As a matter of fact, 71% of marketers have actually admitted to using AI to spark creativity and 58% of companies implementing generative AI use it specifically for content creation. This just goes to show how many people are currently tapping into AI tools for content inspiration.
Let’s Talk About The Cons
Lack Of Authenticity And Creativity
Of course, these systems are more than capable of creating content that is clear and well-written. However, as with any man-made thing, it can sometimes go astray. When it comes to AI, many people have stated that their computer-created content came across as a bit formulaic. This lack of personal touch may or may not fully capture your brand’s voice or the emotional tone that can make your stories truly engaging.
Quality And Accuracy Concerns
Unfortunately, Artificial Intelligence can also sometimes provide outdated, inaccurate, or misleading info. Without an actual human double-checking the data, there is always a chance that the content might not be trustworthy or align with your brand’s standards. As a matter of fact, research conducted by the BBC found that over half of AI-generated responses from popular AI tools contained significant issues, including factual inaccuracies and misleading content. So, before you solely rely on it for info, just be aware of the potential risks.
Risk Of Plagiarism And Duplicate Content
Since most of these models are trained on vast amounts of pre-existing content, there is a possibility of unintentional plagiarism or generating content that closely resembles existing material. This can pose legal and SEO-related challenges for businesses aiming to maintain originality.
Ethical And Compliance Issues
AI-generated content can raise some ethical issues, especially when it comes to being open about how content is made. Some consumers feel tricked if they find out the content was created by AI instead of a real person. And believe it or not, about 50% of consumers can actually tell when content is AI-generated! Similarly, industries with strict rules, like healthcare or finance, it is important to be careful about using AI for content creation to avoid any compliance problems.
Negatively Impacting Your SEO Efforts
AI tends to rephrase existing content, which can sometimes result in duplicate or low-value material that hurts your search rankings. It can also produce content that feels shallow or generic, which Google may also consider as low-quality. There is always a risk of overusing keywords too, potentially making your content look spammy to search engines. Remember, Google does NOT ban AI-generated content, however, it DOES favour content that is helpful and created with a human touch.
How To Find The Right Balance
The general idea behind using AI, is that it should complement human creativity, not replace it.
Look at it this way, many digital marketing agencies and businesses alike should probably use AI to improve their overall efficiency while still having humans oversee the content created to ensure quality control, brand consistency, and emotional impact. Let’s call it the hybrid approach if you will, where AI takes care of repetitive tasks and humans fine-tune and add a personal touch.
Here Is Our Final Two Cents
In the famous words of Oren Etzioni (Professor Emeritus of Computer Science at the University of Washington, and founding CEO of the Allen Institute for Artificial Intelligence), “AI is a tool. The choice about how it gets deployed is ours.”
There is absolutely no denying that AI is indeed a very powerful tool. And as the saying goes, with great power comes great responsibility. Therefore, it is your responsibility to ensure you use it wisely and correctly.
However, if it all sounds just a tad too much for you to take on right now and you need help creating content with a human touch, our team is always here to help. Just give us a shout and we will take it from there.
