AI-made art will increase the value of human creativity

Artificial intelligence-generated creative work will make human creativity more valuable, technology expert, writer and lyricist Heiti Kender told ERR’s Vikerhommik programme.

Kender said he did not consider it a direct problem when people used AI to make music. If AI allows people to create music or other works, their market value will approach zero, he said, while the value of work made by humans will approach infinity.

“Time is the best filter,” Kender said, adding that AI-generated work would ultimately increase the value of human creativity. He argued that if technology allowed people to complete certain tasks more quickly, they would have more time to be human, enjoy and create beauty, and produce art.

Kender also said additional restrictions on creative work, including a requirement to highlight the use of AI, should be removed. He compared this with music, where people are not required to state that autotune was used or that a drum rhythm was programmed.

As an example, Kender described a song for which he wrote lyrics 15 years ago. The lyrics were written for Tõnu Aare’s instrumental track “Igatsus”, but no one had wanted to sing them. Kender said he had recently learned that Aare had written the instrumental piece as a longing for one’s homeland, while he had written the lyrics about longing between two people.

Technology eventually allowed Kender to test how the song might sound. He uploaded its instrumental basis and recorded a rough vocal version before asking an AI system to produce a female voice that was sensitive but firm, and warm but not ingratiating. After several attempts, he said, one version suited him completely.

Kender described AI as a tool for rapid prototyping, allowing him to hear possibilities he could not otherwise imagine or explain to others.