A clear trend is unfolding: people are retreating from sharing authentic stories on social media. Posts, when they appear at all, are meticulously curated, and bloggers have gone silent. Spontaneity and creativity have given way to polished, sanitised content, erasing the rough edges, human errors, and artistic vulnerability that once defined our digital spaces.

It begs the question: Is art still alive?

Before Artificial Intelligence (AI), art was rooted in human experience. Our ability to create beauty from nothing and find order in chaos was what distinguished us from machines. With AI’s rise, that distinction is blurred, raising questions about the future of human creativity.

Now, all one has to do is think of a rough idea and prompt a bot to create it. Heck, even the bot can think for you! What, then, is the role of the artist? Where does she fit in? Is there anything left for him to create?

And then there’s the new term, “content creator”. The term itself lacks creativity. It’s bland, uninspired and artistically condescending. Think about it. The word “content” denotes containment or fixed volume. Are we implying that all our artistic creations published in the digital arena have no place outside this confined space?

For example, is a blogger not a writer? Just because they publish their work on a blog, does it mean they can’t be valued as writers outside of the blog? The same applies to photographers, actors, painters and other artists. Does the medium of publication define the quality of the art?

The opposite query deserves critique. Are content creators even interested in being viewed as artists? Do they qualify to be called artists? Should we delineate the two? Content creators and artists?

Lastly, does the use of Artificial Intelligence automatically disqualify one from being called an artist? All these questions deserve appraisal.

As for the AI “art” itself, a few words. The creativity is evident, granted. But does it not have a mechanical precision to it that seems somewhat soulless and hollow? Take writing, for example. AI writing appears too rigid and forced. AI editors seem preachy and uncompromising. There’s no fluidity or room for sluggishness, characteristics that make human art human.

Why should we allow machines to define for us what ‘beauty’ is? Zeros and ones should never be allowed to referee art!