Technology, Philosophy & Art
What if all art is actually A.I. art?
If we live in a simulation, then all artists are AI
With the rising popularity of AI art generators, there has been furious debate about AI images and whether it counts as true art. I’ve made my philosophy on this subject clear in an earlier article (see below). But what if there is no real art, and the only art created was by Artificial Intelligence?
Basically: what if every piece of art throughout history was AI art all along? It’s not as far-fetched as it may seem. It’s entirely logical. Let me explain:
Nick Bostrom’s Simulation Argument
Nick Bostrom’s Simulation Argument would say that all artists are already A.I. In philosophy, the Simulation Argument is a theory that if technology reaches the stage of being able to generate a simulation indistinguishable from reality for its inhabitants, then the probability is high that we are currently living in a computer-simulated reality, and not a ‘real’ world.
The argument was proposed by Swedish philosopher Nick Bostrom in 2003, and builds on the classical traditions of Descartes and Plato’s Cave (adapted for modern technology). Bostrom’s argument posits that in a universe with immense computing capabilities, any observer must consider that they are residing in any one of many simulated realities, rather than in the real one.
Bostrom observes that the technological abilities to generate sophisticated simulations are likely to increase over time, and surpass our own. It is also plausible that when a civilization reaches that point, it will create multiple simulations, including ‘ancestor simulations’ of earlier, less advanced eras.
It would be very difficult for artificially intelligent beings existing in such a simulation, thinking they are human, to ever be certain of their existence.
However, the probability would statistically always favor that they reside in an elaborate fabrication and their reality is nothing more than an illusion.
The chance that you live in the base reality is slim
This is because — if simulating realities were ever to become possible — then there would be no reason not to generate multiple environments, including ones identical to our own. Given the vast number of simulations that could be created, the likelihood that we are living in a simulated reality becomes quite high, because the base reality would be outnumbered by simulations.
If we are living in a perfectly executed simulation, then it would be next to impossible for us to ever know the difference for sure. Bostrom redefines, in the terms of technological determinism and futurism, the essence of Zhuangzi’s Daoist dilemma: “Am I a butterfly dreaming that I am a man?”
Technological determinism and the Matrix
Creating realistic simulations would require astronomical computing power. Bostrom’s argument relies on three technological conditions:
- Computing power will continue to increase (Moore’s Law — which appears to be cooling off)
- Technological progress will eventually reach the point where it will become powerful enough to generate simulations of entire universes
- If a civilization attains this technology, then they will use it.
Assuming these outcomes are ultimately inevitable, and that futurists like Ray Kurzweil are correct to believe a technology that can be invented, will be invented, then we must acknowledge that we most likely exist in a ‘Matrix’.
AI art is a requirement of simulated realities
AI image generators are evidence of the very advancements in technology that would be required for artificial worlds. AI is increasingly capable of creating more lifelike, realistic images. This is a major step toward generating virtual environments, bringing us closer to that Holodeck scenario, and the day when Nick Bostrom’s theory becomes a reality.
Art is a precondition of thinking we are human
Artistic achievement has been traditionally upheld as an exclusively human attribute, something that elevates our species, and individually, our egos. It is one of the measures of what it means to be human, and an acid test of whether a digital life form can come close to a degree of consciousness.
When AI can create images that are indiscernible from those created by humans, will they have ultimately reached their Pinocchio moment, and attained a level of humanity practically indistinguishable from our own?
This is one reason why AI art — and its human practitioners — attract such vitriol from Neo-Luddites. We are digitizing something that was viewed as fundamentally human, and some see that as a scary prospect that cuts to the core. But AI is starting to create art, music, and literature; essentially, output that resembles and challenges human creativity and imagination.
Remember, a complex AI convinced that it is ‘real’ is a core component of the existential dilemma of whether we ourselves might be artificial beings.
What does Nick Bostrom’s Simulation Theory mean for art?
The supreme irony is that if we are all stuck together in a simulated reality, then the same artists opposing AI art, are most likely AI artists themselves.
If reality is a computer simulation then, by definition, all art is AI art. Rembrandt, Picasso, and artists on DeviantArt are all part of machine learning. And the AI art generators drawing on their art for training data are a never-ending cycle; not a feedback loop, but an evolutionary spiral.
This may challenge our preconceived notions about the nature of art, but it also opens up interesting possibilities for how we view and appreciate art. We can begin to consider all art — from Renaissance paintings to digital pieces — as wider expressions of a powerful and progressive singularity seeking to understand and replicate our environment — real or not.
If Bostrom is right, then all art, whether created by humans or machines, likely exists within the framework of a simulated universe and therefore can be seen as being generated by an overarching artificial intelligence.
Maybe art is not something unique to humans; maybe it’s a universal, shared experience of information that we all partake in collectively.
That makes AI art something worth embracing and exploring further.
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Who is Jim the AI Whisperer?
Jim the AI Whisperer offers advanced training in how to use AI generators to create stunning visuals, as well as how to write original and compelling content. If you’re interested in discovering more, feel free to contact me.
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