Artificial Intelligence Art (MidJourney, Dall-E etc etc discussion)

[battlewraith]

The genie is out of the bottle. It's not going to be stuffed back in. I understand the outrage on the part of the general online art community about having their work scraped by an AI without their consent, against their wishes, and without compensation. I hope that this outcry at least generates discussion about the ethics of AI use and the underlying issue of art being a commodity that will be insanely cheap with the advent of these programs. But in a best case scenario where class action lawsuits succeed and artists refuse to participate on websites that feature AI art, etc. the money interests behind these programs will simply hire good artists to scrape and the technology will continue to advance. And the public at large does not give a shit.

"Humans should be protected from technologies that potentially have an adverse effect on humankind."

Think about thesupermarket. When I was a kid, you went through the checkout line and someone scanned your stuff, someone else bagged, etc. Now it's all self-checkout. I read somewhere that each of those self checkout machines eliminated the need for 3 workers. Nailguns reduced the number of carpenters/roofers/etc. The technology is not the problem. The problem is society's relentless drive for profit and cheap goods.

[D.C.]

Any thoughts on the writing side of AI? I've been messing around with ChatGPT and just asking for the stupidest stuff and being pleasantly surprised.

Can you explain Batman as a drunk valley girl?

Sure! Here is an explanation of Batman as a drunk valley girl:

Oh my gosh, like, Batman is like, the ultimate superhero, right? I mean, like, he's so, like, strong and like, brave and stuff. And he's, like, super smart too, you know? Like, he's always, like, figuring out these, like, super complicated plans to, like, take down the bad guys and stuff.

But, like, have you ever seen him when he's, like, totally drunk? Oh my gosh, it's, like, hilarious. He's, like, all slurring his words and stumbling around, trying to, like, fight crime and stuff. It's like, "Whoa, Batman, like, maybe you should, like, take it easy, you know?"

But, like, even when he's, like, totally wasted, he's still, like, totally capable of, like, kicking butt and stuff. I mean, it's like, nothing can stop him, not even, like, a serious case of the drunkies. He's just, like, the ultimate hero, no matter what.

Can you give a speech on how great ponies are from the point of view of Darkseid?

Sure! Here is a speech on how great ponies are from the point of view of Darkseid:

Greetings, fellow beings. I am Darkseid, ruler of Apokolips and conqueror of worlds. And today, I come before you not to speak of war and destruction, but to extol the virtues of a most noble and majestic creature: the pony.

Yes, I know what you may be thinking. How can the mighty Darkseid, destroyer of galaxies, find joy in something as seemingly insignificant as a pony? But let me tell you, there is much to be admired in these noble beasts.

First and foremost, ponies are strong. Their powerful muscles and sturdy legs allow them to carry heavy loads and work tirelessly for long periods of time.

But do not be fooled by their strength, for ponies are also gentle and kind. They are known for their gentle disposition and their ability to form strong bonds with their human companions.

Ponies are also intelligent and resourceful. They are quick learners and can be trained to perform a variety of tasks.

So do not underestimate the power and majesty of the pony. They are truly one of the greatest creatures in the universe, and they deserve our respect and admiration. Long live the ponies!

Can you write a six panel comic where Godzilla orders chicken nuggets in the middle of a fight with King Kong?

Sure! Here is a six panel comic where Godzilla orders chicken nuggets in the middle of a fight with King Kong:

Panel 1: Godzilla and King Kong are locked in a fierce battle, with Godzilla breathing fire and King Kong swinging a punch.

Panel 2: Godzilla takes a step back and pulls out his phone.

Panel 3: He dials a number and holds the phone to his ear.

Panel 4: Godzilla: Hi, I'd like to place an order for some chicken nuggets.

Panel 5: King Kong looks at Godzilla in disbelief as the battle pauses.

Panel 6: Godzilla: Yeah, make it a 20 piece with BBQ sauce on the side. Thanks!

As Godzilla continues to fight off King Kong, he takes a break to satisfy his craving for some chicken nuggets. Even the mightiest of monsters have their weaknesses!

[Ryan_Knight]

We now have a lawsuit folks… and it looks like it has some good grounds

[battlewraith]

This video explains pretty clearly why these lawsuits will most likely accomplish nothing, the main reason being precedents that have been set by artists using existing images in the creation of new works: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=8gnRquxKp3E

[Ryan_Knight]

Video on youtube from Comics Connection

”The Impact of AI on the Comic Industry”

https://youtu.be/Qh08zpzR-SU

[battlewraith]

I did the Midjourney beta last year and it was amusing but didn't seem like that big of a deal. I tried it again (had a little sticker shock at having to subscribe) and started messing around with it.
First off, this is from last August:

And this is from this month, with almost the exact same prompt:


I started using some examples of my own art, either to use in a prompt for a new AI image or to blend my art with AI generated images. So with this piece I did with microns:

I generated a bunch of rendered iterations. Here are some examples:



I have hundreds of images that I generated really ****ing quickly--girls, monsters, robots, landscapes, etc. The subscription includes a member gallery of everything I've ever done in the application. Not only can I (and other people) look at my images--I can also see a selection of related images that other people did so I can find other related results I like and understand what prompts were used to get there. About 20% of the images I've done are (imo) amazing. Maybe 30-40% are somehow useful for ideas. Maybe 40% are useful as reference. And maybe half are good for style reference (color combinations, composition, etc.).

I think use of this technology will become industry standard in a couple years, and yes I think comic artists will be using it. I don't intend to use any midjourney imagery raw (ie. just painting over a computer generated image). But the time this will save me in that early stage of picture making when I don't really know what I want is incredible. In 10 minutes of exploring an idea, I can have dozens of really solid examples of what I do want and what I don't want, and then I can evolve my process from that point.

[D.C.]

I quite like that grey and green one.

I would periodically check out the midjourney subreddit but grew bored because everything ends up looking more or less the same and obviously AI. But now I see Version 5 is out and boy is that impressive. It can even do hands now.

[battlewraith]

I quite like that grey and green one.

I would periodically check out the midjourney subreddit but grew bored because everything ends up looking more or less the same and obviously AI. But now I see Version 5 is out and boy is that impressive. It can even do hands now.

Lol um...yeah. They're saying it can do hands. I think a better way to look at it is that, if you're generating a new image from a prompt it's much more likely to do a decent job with it. I'm finding that if you feed it existing imagery to use as a guide, it still messes them up. I uploaded an image of Ronnie James Dio doing devil horns and my man basically ended up waving lobsters in front of his face. But then again I did some images that used Arthur Rackham as a guide and they came out pretty good, so maybe there's some underlying dynamic here that I'm missing.

[battlewraith]

Some of the best AI stuff is people doing parodies. This one is hilarious: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=w2eW6jezNfU