ChatGPT is changing the game…

…especially in the creative industry. With its unparalleled ability to generate logical reasoning, objective information, and near-perfect output in just seconds, ChatGPT has already made a massive impact on the world. Still, ChatGPT could never replace human creativity, but instead, serves as a tool to amplify it. Just like the calculator, the personal computer, and even the search engine, the purpose of ChatGPT is to enhance the humans who use it.

The question is, how do we use it?

Creatives are trained to find a balance between art and science, input and output, vision and execution. But now that’s changing. Thanks to ChatGPT, creatives must now shift their approach to harness the virtually infinite capabilities of AI to meet their specific needs. This means we must tap into what makes us unique and use it in conjunction with ChatGPT. In other words, we must do what Chat GPT can’t — we must be human.

1. We must be childish

Children are just learning the ways of the world. This gives them an innate sense of wonder, curiosity, and playfulness that can lead to open-minded thinking and innovative ideas. ChatGPT, on the other hand, is bound by intelligently following the rules and directions set by 10% of the internet. It may be great at following rules and parameters, but that inherently limits the ideas that it can flesh out.

Example prompts:

• “If there’s such thing as a black hole, there must be a white hole in existence, too. Can you define it for me?”
• “Make up a story about a future where McDonald’s enters the fashion industry.”
• “Write a rough draft of a comedy script for a laundry detergent that cleans your mind of dirty thoughts.”

2. We must be irrational

Making irrational decisions is fundamental to human nature, allowing us to think beyond the boundaries of logic and reason. Irrationality gives rise to our emotions, desires, and passions, and allows us to create, imagine, and experience things that don’t necessarily have a rational explanation. It allows for serendipitous discoveries, and encourages individuals to take bigger risks, dismissing the head and following the heart, even when the outcome is uncertain. With ChatGPT, we can input our most irrational ideas and trust the AI to build on them by attempting to create a logical path to execution.

Example prompts:

• “What if our feet were our hands and our hands were our feet? How would the shoes and gloves industries be affected?”
• “Give me a concept writeup for an idea called: Uber Bathroom.”
• “What could happen if someone traveled back in time to warn themselves not to build a time machine?”

3. We must be imperfect

Perfect is the enemy of good. So, embrace clunky copy, half-baked ideas, and convoluted brain dumps as a source of inspiration for our ChatGPT inputs. They can be molded into refined expressions of us, generated into more original ideas, and fostered into a greater willingness to take risks and experiment.

We are constantly learning, growing, and changing. And by trusting ChatGPT with our imperfect ideas along the way, we can create better work and develop ourselves, faster.

Example prompts:

• “Can you make this copy flow better? [Attach your clunky copy]”
• “The concept below is half-baked, and I need you to simplify it. [Attach your convoluted concept]”
• “Can you refine this brain dump of random thoughts into a linear narrative? [Attach your brain dump]”

4. We must be subjective

Chat GPT is a wealth of objective and (usually) accurate information, but it lacks the personal touch people come to expect from their favorite human creators. This personal touch is a representation of our subjective take on our life experiences. So, when we use ChatGPT to cut our work time in half, we should use that time we saved to inject our own unique voice into the final product. By embracing subjectivity in creative work, we can tap into our own voice and deliver ideas that are personal, meaningful, and impactful. We should keep this in mind during the editing process, after we nail the prompt.

5. We must be slow

The idea generation stage should be fast to allow for free-flowing thoughts and quick sketches, while the refinement stage should be slow and more deliberate. After generating output with ChatGPT at rapid speeds, we should take more time to think deeply and reflect on the ideas, shaping them until they fit the context in which our audience will experience them. For instance, if we’re writing a song about summer. Before we finalize it, we should make sure to listen to it while cruising down the highway with friends, with the windows down, basking in the warm weather.

This may take extra time, but it will lead to more meaningful work. It will bring out empathy, intuition, and emotional depth that ChatGPT cannot create on its own, which is often what makes creative work stand out, resonate with others, and become timeless.

All in all, we must be human.

Chat GPT will always be better than humans at generating output. And the quality of that output will always depend on the quality of the input, which of course, is controlled by humans. That’s why, in order to stay relevant, creative people need to pivot.

Instead of spending countless hours on generating output, our time will be better spent exploring the world, collecting experiences, reflecting on them, and using them as reference points as inputs for ChatGPT. Then we should spend time sculpting its output until we believe it’s good enough for the audience.

This means we’re not merely creatives anymore, we’re much more. We are directors, who use our creative taste as our greatest superpower. And now, we all have the most productive junior writer, researcher, idea generator, and coder working beneath us. The question is, how will we direct them to realize our vision?

It all starts with embracing what makes us human.

The post How Should Creatives Use ChatGPT? appeared first on Vivaldi.

In this interview, Jeremy Utley, director of executive education at the Hasso Plattner Institute of Design at Stanford University, talks with Vivaldi about why idea generation is an act of creativity that calls for organizational leadership, the importance of testing ideas in the real world, and why an economic downturn might create the opportunity for proactive disruption. (An idea we explored in a recent video.) Read on:

In the book, you explain that every problem is an idea problem. Before getting to the idea, do companies get hung up on trying to solve things that aren’t problems?

A lot of times there’s a desire to implement a solution without a clear problem. There’s a hammer looking for a nail. They’re really excited about this technology, and they’re trying to implement the technology without a real understanding of the problem to be solved. It was John Dewey, the education reformer who said, “a problem well-put is half solved.”

You give this definition: Ideas / Time = Ideaflow. What are the requirements needed to put ideaflow into action?

Basically, you want to be in a state where generating solutions to problems is natural, and then quickly and scrappily testing those ideas to get real world data. You need a system and a process for testing those ideas quickly — that’s kind of what creates the flow.

If we want to have new ideas, we need to be seeking new inputs, and that affects how we interact with the market, collaborators, supply chain partners, customers and things like that. The other thing that might come up is how we interact as a team. Have we created psychological safety, where we can share bad ideas with one another and be stimulated and sparked into unexpected directions? Or are we only allowed to share good ideas with each other and are we only allowed to say really smart-sounding things?

In the idea generation context, you get how you cultivate inputs and how you cultivate the collaborative dynamic, and then on the experimentation side of the equation, the question is how quickly and scrappily can we act.

How do you assess which ideas you should put into the testing or experimentation phase?

The more you can get out of the business of choosing, the better. Meaning, test as many things as possible. It’s not that you need to be running thousands of experiments. You may not be able to do thousands — could you do five? Could you do a few more than one? Because the odds of success go up exponentially pretty quickly.

How do you get business leaders and executives on board with the importance of creativity?

I don’t think anyone questions the importance of creativity, actually. IBM did a recent survey of 1500 CEOs, the single most important skill they felt for the future business leaders was creativity. Everybody is generally agreed, the question is, what they value in principle, they challenge in practice — you don’t need to make the case for creativity, yet, if leaders don’t have tools to actually cultivate it, they end up killing it. Giving them tools to practically cultivate it is where the real rub and the real opportunity is.

Maybe there’s a disconnect.

Fundamentally it gets down to a question of definitions. Meaning, what is “creativity”? There’s a seventh grade girl in Ohio who has the world’s best definition of creativity — her definition is “doing more than the first thing you think of.” That is a profoundly accurate and elegantly simple definition. It speaks without regard to a vertical, or to a function – you can do more than the first thing you think of in anything – not just in painting or music – but in email subject lines, in giving an annual performance review, or dealing with expense reimbursements. It cuts across domains.

One of the best things a leader can do to help their team be more creative is push them to generate options, alternatives. It’s a profoundly creative act, and it requires leadership support because not only organizational bias is against generating alternatives, but even our own individual cognitive bias is against generating alternatives.

Most teams are doing one thing — they’re trying to find one right answer, they’re solving one problem. A leader who is seeking to cultivate creativity on her teams is a leader who is saying, well, what else are we trying?

You use the phrase “proactive disruption.” How does it differentiate from “iteration”?

Iteration is all about making changes based on what you learn. Proactive disruption is about saying, okay, in almost every field, the thing that’s being done right now isn’t going to always be done. There is going to be a disruption. For every Blockbuster, there will be a Netflix. If you take as a given that disruptive forces are on the rise, technology changes are occurring, reducing the barrier and cost of and basis of competition, then you go okay, are we going to wait for someone else to disrupt us, or are we going to be proactive about disrupting ourselves.

You talk about creativity as a way to weather economic challenges, and this may be related to the proactive disruption idea — in thinking about 2023 and the fears around recession, do you have recommendations about what companies should do now to be thinking in a more creative way?

I’d never thought about connecting those two things, but a recession is a wonderful prompt for proactive disruption. Given that the market is going down, given that the market is changing, companies can consider who is going to start taking share in this environment, what kinds of moves are now possible or required in order to win, and can we make those moves instead of someone else.

When it comes to carving out time or a blank space for ideas to happen, what are your favorite tactics to create that space?

The calendar is an incredibly effective tool that you can wield. For a lot of people, the reason they can’t innovate is because they don’t have time. What’s the solution? Use your calendar as a weapon rather than be a victim of your calendar. Start blocking time proactively to accommodate a different set of activities.

—

Jeremy Utley is the director of executive education at Stanford’s d.school.

Vivaldi is a leading independent global business and brand transformation firm with strategists and creatives working in offices in the USA, Germany, Latin America, and the UK.

The post Why Generating Ideas and Practicing Proactive Disruption Can Drive Business Success appeared first on Vivaldi.

Vivaldi Creative Director John Adie explores the opportunities, challenges, and surprises offered by AI art in this Q&A:

If you had to give a quick definition or description of AI art, how would you define/describe it?

AI art is digital imagery created with the assistance of artificial intelligence. A machine learning algorithm trained on millions of images processes natural language inputs (prompts) and generates imagery that it deems best matches the text. Technically, this is called a text-to-image model. Prompts can be very simple like: A kitten wearing a top hat. Or more complex like: a portrait of a white kitten wearing a black top hat and a suit and tie, vintage tintype photograph.

Left: A cat wearing a top hat. Right: A portrait of a white kitten wearing a black top hat and a suit and tie, vintage tintype photograph

What was your entry point, or how did you first discover the AI art world?

I saw an article on one of my branding blogs where someone had used AI to generate a series of illustrated icons. The fidelity was incredible and I immediately signed up for the beta test of OpenAI’s Dall-E 2, which is what the original artist used. A few weeks later I received my welcome email and I was hooked.

What tools have you most been enjoying using, and why?

I started out with Dall-E 2, but quickly felt limited by the simplicity of the user interface. Not to mention I didn’t love the credits system. Dall-E requires you to buy credits, using one for every prompt.

Today, I almost exclusively use Midjourney, which is a Discord-based generator. Aside from generally being able to create much higher fidelity imagery, Midjourney has a variety of tools and parameters I can use to better guide the AI to my desired outcome. Things like: how hyper-realistic to make an image, the aspect ratio, or the overall “random-ness” the AI applies. Midjourney works on a monthly subscription so I can generate unlimited images –within some limitations – which works out better for my needs.

There are other tools out there such as Stable Diffusion, which is open-source. I haven’t explored that one yet.

Left to right: Midjourney, Dall-E 2, Midjourney, Dall-E 2

Here’s a comparison of Midjourney and Dall-E 2. (Left two) a cat wearing a top hat (Right two) a portrait of a white kitten wearing a black top hat and a suit and tie, vintage tintype photograph

What do you find most exciting about utilizing AI tools? 

I talk about this a lot but, as a creative director, using AI art generators is like having millions of accomplished artists and designers at your fingertips. Want an image to look illustrated by Haiyao Miyazaki? Done. Wonder what a Star Destroyer would look like painted by Johannes Vermeer? Got it. Want to know what kind of building Zaha Hadid would design if she were inspired by a Nike sneaker? I can show you that too. Every great creator that had or has a unique style can be tapped for their visual expertise.

Prompt: “Nike Zoom Rival Waffle sneaker, an architectural rendering of a building, designed by Zaha Hadid architects with big curves and detailed triangle pattern windows, exterior architectural rendering wide angle, v-ray, cinema 4d”

Is there a difference between “image generation” and “art”?

I love this question because it’s been asked, in so many words, for millennia. What is art? Who is an artist? What tools and processes can create art? Who decides? Just as beauty is in the eye of the beholder, so is art.

Personally, I think art is anything that expresses someone’s desire to create.

Do I think a single image generated by AI is inherently art? No. But it could be. The muddy areas in this conversation are where the most compelling work is happening. You can easily generate an image that looks like it was painted by a master, but it’s the works that make you ask “could this be art?” that I find the most interesting.

For designers with more traditional skill sets, how do you think these tools will change the way that they work?

Text-to-image generators will help all types of creatives visualize their concepts faster. Creators will be able to explore combinations of styles and subjects that have never existed. And most importantly, the imagery will not be limited by their own experiences. AI can transcend human thought and take its best stab at even the wildest concepts. Think of it as a way to get out of your own head and get a more objective look at what you want to create.

There are many legal and ethical challenges surrounding AI art development — do you have any thoughts on how these challenges will have to be addressed? 

The #1 concern I have seen (from the art world) is copyright and plagiarism. Since it is so easy to generate something in someone else’s style, many view this as a plagiarism grey area. While I believe it to be a valid concern, any disputes would be handled on a case by case basis anyhow, just as “regular” art conflicts are.

There are ownership questions as well. According to Midjourney’s Terms of Service, both Midjourney and the user own full rights to the images created. This means someone could take their art and sell it on a t-shirt, but so could Midjourney – and neither have any legal right to tell the other to stop. Dall-E 2, on the other hand, owns everything that users create, with no ownership given to the user.

There is someone who has acquired the first known copyright for AI generated product – a graphic novel. Still, questions remain: if the novel itself is copyrighted, is each individual piece of AI-generated illustration as well?

Ethically, the biggest concern I have seen from the world at large is deepfakes. Deepfakes are media of celebrities or public figures that look real but are generated by AI. The implications can be terrifying, especially with politicians and world leaders. People could be generated in compromising positions or, when it comes to AI video and voice generators, saying things they never said.

You can see here, in these portraits created based on a Lisa Frank style, how good Midjourney is at recreating the likeness of celebrities and public figures.

Left to right: Beyonce, Biggie Smalls, Betty White, Ariana Grande

How do you think the creative world is being advanced by AI?

The more tools at an artist’s disposal, the better! As with any new tool, you have to learn how to use it — and perhaps become an expert in it. For a serious piece of work, I will spend upwards of two hours just refining the prompt and trying a bunch of different word combinations, styles, and technical parameters. The learning curve isn’t all that steep, but it’s still a satisfying new way to put my creativity to work.

People are using the AI in their everyday creative workstreams, too. Some artists generate a bunch of imagery and then photoshop the best parts together. Others use a technique called overpainting, which is when they take an AI generated composition and then apply their style over top. They save time by making the AI take a first stab at lighting, scale, and proportions so they can focus on style, color, and refining the subject matter.

Another great benefit is more and more people are learning about artists and art history through these tools. People who may have never considered who Johannes Vermeer or Albrecht Dürer were, are now looking for artists who can match the style they see in their head. I often discover new artists by just googling “famous [blank] artists” where blank is a particular media or style, i.e. engraving or impressionism. Plus, I learn about new artists from reading other people’s prompts.

I’m certain that as these tools get democratized and easier to use, we’ll see a shift in the way everyone will be approaching image creation — similar to how high definition photography and video were democratized by smartphones. Perhaps those who have always had vision, but have lacked the artistic skill to realize it will be empowered to finally bring their idea to life with AI.

Can you share a few of the different things you’ve created and maybe a sentence or two about what tool you used to create it, and what your thoughts/ideas were going into the creation?

The official Midjourney Facebook page recently held their first community contest with the theme “Fantasy Buildings.” There were over 500 submissions, and I ended up taking first place with this isometric crystal building. For whatever reason, I am often attracted to crystals and colorful light refractions. Cross that with my love of MC Escher and the Monument Valley video game and we ended up here. It’s against the rule to photoshop images for Midjourney contests, so these are completely unedited. 

From left to right: original generations to iterations to final artwork.
Prompt: crystal castle made of luxury crystals, baccarat swarovski, windows, doors, lights, in a mystical forest, sailor moon crescent, pink soft glow, ::MC Escher::2, isometric, mystical glistening –ar 2:3

Anything else to add/mention?

Go sign up for Dall-E 2 now! They just removed the waitlist. Your first 15 credits every month are free. Also check out the public Midjourney feed to get an idea of just how varied the generations can be.

Where can people find some of your AI art work? 

You can follow me on Instagram at crystal_aesthetic.ai and on LinkedIn. Please reach out if you have questions or want to chat!

The post Disrupting Design: How Emerging AI Tools are Changing Creativity appeared first on Vivaldi.

Buitoni partnered with Vivaldi Partners to relaunch the brand with a new growth strategy and in-store merchandising for the US – one that would draw shoppers to the display in the store and forge a quick connection at the shelf.

To carve out a meaningful space for Buitoni, the Vivaldi team reframed the opportunity beyond pasta to ‘all meals to linger over’. We undertook a rigorous brand assessment and conducted consumer shop-alongs and in-home research to examine the consumer demand landscape and explore how the simple authenticity of Buitoni products could improve daily life.

The insights Vivaldi uncovered and the subsequent strategic work galvanized our US merchandising strategy. I found their approach both inspiring and practical.

Brigid Gilmore, Director of Marketing, Nestle USA

Employing our proprietary ConsumerFirst methodology, we studied the daily habits and routines of consumers to give us a deeper understanding of how Buitoni could better fit their daily life contexts. While Vivaldi’s research revealed that most consumers related to Buitoni’s Italian heritage, most weren’t aware of the benefits of Buitoni’s products, such as why fresh pasta is superior to dry.

Vivaldi developed and tested five possible brand positioning concepts, finally settling on “The Joy of Good Food,” comprising four key dimensions: passion for great tasting food; carefully chosen ingredients; fresh tasting and succulent dishes; and elegantly simple but bold flavors. The positioning was extended to the demand opportunities identified in our research to create three distinct growth platforms, with new products, packaging and innovations tiered along 3 horizons to build the brand frachise over time.

Parents are placing greater emphasis than ever before on feeding families healthy meals – we needed to communicate that Buitoni was a convenient, nutritious solution for busy families who still want to enjoy dinner together. Our in-store strategy helped to do just that.

David Tran, Engagement Manager, Vivaldi Partners Group

Vivaldi’s ConsumerFirst research had also uncovered a strong appetite for more authentic Mediterranean cuisine and healthy, yet delicious, foods. While consumers demonstrated a clear preference for healthy meals, time-crunched households struggled to find the time necessary to plan nutritious convivial dinners. By applying those insights to the brand positioning, Vivaldi created a fresh merchandising concept – “Come to the Table.” Based around the idea that busy moms and dads are pressed for time but still want to have sit-down family dinners, “Come to the Table” invites consumers to gather around the Buitoni table – a place to share ideas about food and life around it. This was sampled across major US food retailers with great success.

As a direct result of Vivaldi’s work, Buitoni’s US revenue grew three-fold in just five years.

The post Cooking Up a Brand Refresh for Nestle’s Top Pasta Brand appeared first on Vivaldi.