AI in art: Where are we now

By Ashley Peng, 2026

Published 9/21/23

The boom of artificial intelligence that society is enthralled with has evidently caused people across the world to question its place and the extent of its role in many different industries. While AI certainly threatens creative industries, many professionals remain optimistic about their opportunity to work. Many of these creatives, such as artists, animators, architects, designers and filmmakers, remain aware of the value that human-made art holds. This value will only grow with increased usage of AI, especially since studies seem to back up the idea that humans tend to prefer art made by fellow humans. AI also begs the argument of how far legislation can go into technological innovation. 

With AI-generated art in particular, the matter of copyright or intellectual property and art appropriation remain as the most prominent bases to legal discussions. On August 18, 2023, Washington D.C.-based federal judge Beryl A. Howell ruled that AI generated artwork cannot be copyrighted after Stephen Thaler of Imagination Engines, a company dedicated to creating advanced machine intelligence programs, sued the US Copyright Office. Judge Howell wrote that since the artwork in question was created without “human involvement,” then it cannot be protected under copyright law. While it was acknowledged that this case was more simplistic, the gray nature of AI has already started to prove that other court cases and their decisions could be much more complex. 

Ultimately, while the technological edge becomes sharper and sharper, that doesn’t erase the possibilities or even all the opportunities for human artists. While there is no doubt that jobs will be changed, there is an even stronger possibility that human artists will be more and more desired and that the boundaries for creativity will be pushed further than ever before.