The world of art and technology often collide in unusual and surprising ways. This is never more apparent than in the recent New Yorker illustration done by David Szauder for a profile piece of OpenAI CEO, Sam Altman. When viewed, it provides a genuinely uncanny experience, making it feel like something best suited for Halloween, rather than a revered publication like the New Yorker.
Looking at the illustration, your eyes are immediately drawn to Altman, standing in a plain blue sweater, a neutral expression etched upon his face. But things quickly take a surreal turn with a halo of faces encompassing his head. Multiple Altman look-alikes leer out at the viewer, each one showcasing a variety of emotions from rage to desolation. With one final face being cradled in Altman’s hands, this illustration feels like an eerie embodiment of John Milton’s famous quote, “The mind is its own place, and in itself can make a heaven of hell, a hell of heaven..”
The real plot-twist in this visual storytelling is present in the fine print at the bottom of it – “Visual by David Szauder; Generated using A.I.”. That’s right – this creative piece was birthed not solely from human hands, but through the use of Artificial Intelligence. Szauder, a seasoned mixed media artist with over a decade of experience with collage, video, and generative art processes, adopted AI as his tool for this captivating illustration.
The choice of AI is a fitting companion for the profile of Sam Altman, the current CEO of OpenAI. Altman is a known figure in the tech world, co-founding the user-submitted news site Reddit and co-creating the location-based social networking app, Loopt. His journey into the realm of artificial intelligence with OpenAI seems to have impacted the artistic representation of his likeness.
The merging of the human artist’s input and the possibilities rendered by artificial intelligence has given rise to an intriguing artistic method. This fusion has resulted in an illustration that’s even more engaging as it provokes thought about the purpose, possibilities, and pitfalls inherent in artificial intelligence.
Yet, as unsettling as some people might find the illustration, it’s undoubtedly captivating. It’s a stark reminder of how artificial intelligence is increasingly creeping into our daily lives. More importantly, it opens a conversation. A conversation about how much we trust AI, how much control we’re willing to give it, and, ultimately, who has the power to regulate its use?
To learn more about David Szauder’s AI-generated illustration and how it was created, read the full story at The Verge.
