During most of 2023, developers of artificial intelligence (AI) models faced an onslaught of legal disputes from writers and other creators of diverse forms of content regarding the use of the technology to steal their craft.
This, among other downsides, form part of the hard realities that creatives in Kenya are grappling with as they move to implement the new-age technology that also brings with it its fair share of opportunities.
Liz Kilili, a Nairobi-based film writer and director, argues that while AI is still relatively far from displacing African artists due to the unique and authentic nature of African art and languages, it should serve as a wake-up call for local creatives.
“Right now, the upper hand that we have compared to the Western world is authenticity and culture in our art which is going to be really hard for AI to catch up with, and that is good for us,” she told the Business Daily.
“However, there are already over 100 firms in Kenya that are already doing AI, so it’s coming to us as well. So, I think we have an upper hand because it’s going to take some time, but we’ll have to prepare.”
Worry and optimism
A fresh survey published by Nairobi-based arts organisation Creative Garage shows that Kenyan artistes are just as worried as they are optimistic about the growing use of AI in the industry as it bears both good and bad news for them.
According to the research that polled 130 creatives in Kenya between January and April this year, 75.2 percent of artistes are currently actively employing AI in their creative work, with majority citing both positive and negative impacts on their output.
The most popular AI tools among Kenyan creatives are large-language models or chat bots like ChatGPT and Google Gemini, as well as other generative platforms like Dall-E2 and Midjourney, used by approximately 40 percent of them.
The artistes mostly use AI to generate ideas or spark inspiration for their works of art (23 percent), develop a concept (20 percent), text generation for creative output (nine percent), while seven percent use them for proof reading and to improve workflow.
Apart from copyright concerns, other pain points voiced by respondents include ethical issues presented by generative AI such as creation of deepfakes (doctored AI-generated images of popular figures in unexpected situations), job losses, devaluation of creative work as well as loss of the human touch.
“There is a significant fear that AI could replace human creatives, leading to widespread job losses in fields such as writing, illustration, and music. There is also a risk that over-reliance on AI could hinder the development of creatives’ skills, their ability to think critically, innovate, and learn from the unplanned aspects of the creative process,” reads the report in part.
“AI’s ability to quickly generate content could, in addition, lead to a devaluation of creative work, as the market could be flooded with AI-produced art, music, and literature, diminishing the perceived value of human-created works.”
“AI for creatives presents some sort of a social dilemma; a catch-22 situation. On the one hand, it makes it easier for newbies to venture into the space by scaling down entry barriers while on the other, there’s a watering down that happens to the novelty of art,” notes Kiambu-based graphic designer Samuel Irungu.
Policies and regulations
According to Ms Kilili, preparing the art industry for AI means putting in place necessary policies and regulations to protect artists and their livelihoods from AI displacement, job losses, copyright infringement and income loss.
“There’s no proper system that’s been in place to protect Kenyan creatives against such issues and that’s among the biggest issues worrying the artistes,” she notes.
Kenya currently lacks a legal framework for the deployment of AI, further fanning fears about applicability and safety of the technology.
The rules are supposed to set obligations for both providers and users based on various risks associated with different AI technology models.
Only the European Union and the United States currently have some form of AI rules in place, governing such issues as copyright infringement and ethical use of the technology.
