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Israel launched a wave of strikes across Iran on Friday that targeted its nuclear program and military sites, killing at least two top military officers and raising the prospect of an all-out war between the two bitter Middle East adversaries. It appeared to be the most significant attack Iran has faced since its 1980s war with Iraq. Iran quickly retaliated, sending a swarm of drones at Israel as Supreme Leader Ayatollah Ali Khamenei warned of severe punishment. The attack comes as tensions reached new heights over Tehrans rapidly advancing nuclear program. The Board of Governors at the International Atomic Energy Agency for the first time in 20 years on Thursday censured Iran over it not working with its inspectors. Iran immediately announced it would establish a third enrichment site in the country and swap out some centrifuges for more advanced ones. Israeli leaders cast the attack as necessary to head off an imminent threat that Iran would build nuclear bombs, though it remains unclear how close the country is to achieving that. Associated Press
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In three years, a fellow tech executive recently told me with serene confidence, Everyone will be able to make a full-length movie in AI, totally personalized for them, by just typing up a few prompts. I considered pointing out that this would destroy one of the central functions of art, and one of its greatest pleasures: to connect individuals across time and space through a single act of imagination. But I didnt bother. The furious debate around AI and art mostly consists of opposing sides talking past each other. Tech evangelists offer breezy assertions that generative AI empowers everyone to become an artist, while creators across multiple mediums rage against the technology as a threat to their livelihoodor even to the future of human creativity. Disney and Universals lawsuit against Midjourney will likely intensify this cultural clash. Its painful to hear the hyperbole flying from both directions, especially since I have a foot in both camps. After a lifetime honing my craft, Im proud to have written several New York Times-bestselling novels and every episode of my TV show Panic. In recent years, after researching various technologies for creative projects, Ive also contributed to the development of new AI models. As someone who works in both AI and the arts, let me point out some of the key nuances getting lost in the noise. Generative AI needs artists. Not the other way around Heres a secret that hyperbolic AI execs dont like to acknowledge, but artists should definitely hear: LLMs like ChatGPT have already consumed virtually all the data available online. To meaningfully improve, they now need a continuous influx of new content, including original art. Without it, theyre headed for a recursive loop: generating content that feeds on other AI-generated content, leading to increasingly low-quality or bizarre results. To put it bluntly, generative AI companies need artists and the work they havent made yet. OpenAIs infamous Studio Ghibli meme stunt rightly drew criticism for disrespecting Miyazakis well-known disdain for AI, but it also underscored a key point: theres only so much beloved art in the world at the level of Studio Ghibli, and AI has already devoured it. Artists should recognize the leverage this gives them. They could collectively establish terms AI companies must follow for any content published online, or risk starving the models of fresh creative input. At the same time, artists might reconsider viewing generative AI solely as a threat. That defensive posture underestimates the enduring value of their talent and risks missing out on new avenues of creativity. If anything, the deluge of AI-generated sludge may actually elevate the value of handmade artbooks, paintings, sculpture, live performancemaking these physical forms more precious than ever. Media history supports this. In the early 2000s, with the rise of podcasting, radios demise seemed imminent. Yet today, radio remains twice as popular as podcastsnearly 80 years after TVs debut supposedly heralded its end. Its also clear how much generative AI companies struggle without artists to guide them. Consider the endless parade of AI-generated social media influencerspale imitations of their human counterparts. Why not create an influencer that looks and acts like a dragon or a new alien species? Without someone to infuse the process with joy and imagination, generative AI content fails to engage, inspire, or unite. Or in creative industry terms: its not compelling IP. Artists may not need generative AI, but its a toolset worth exploring. Im excited about what happens when this technology is wielded by real artists. They, not coders, will be the ones to discover new forms of storytelling and visualization that were previously unimaginable. What Art and AI Already Share Im hopeful that well see more collaboration between AI companies and artists. But first, each side must recognize that while they may share a goalcreating something disruptivetheir approaches are radically different. In tech, efficiency is often the end goal of innovation. For artists, inefficiency is the process. The noodling, tweaking, perfecting, and obsessing: these are usually ignored by tech when designing generative AI platforms, but theyre essential to the creation of truly unique art. And, I would argue, essential to the joy of creating at all. Creativity is fundamentally the act of imprinting imagination onto the world; it is visible in the whorls, details, and choices that reflect the makers expressive spirit. My tech executive friend, who believes AI movies can be prompted into existence, overlooks how the inefficiency of the creative process is integral not just to the final product but to the pleasure of making it. It often takes me a full day to write a single page, agonizing over every metaphor and word choice. And the writing is only one phase: I recently sold a novel, The Girl in the Lake, based on my decades-long fascination with past lives and near-death experiences, and their possible scientific underpinnings. Still, I believe the friction between art and tech is partly fueled by an uncomfortable truth: They have more in common than theyd like to admit. Both are highly elitist and gatekeeping industries, often skeptical of anyone outside their preferred colleges, institutions, or circles. Both are ego-driven, with a belief that their work is among the most important contributions to humanity. In their own ways, both technologists and artists are bidding for immortalitywhether by creating a timeless novel or a godlike AI. A little humility from both sides could go a long way toward making future conversations more productive. I first got into developing technology while researching for my novels, and Ive never forgotten that the word technology comes from techneGreek for a system for making art. Heres to an AI-driven future that expands artistic possibility, rather than one locked in outdated, binary debates.
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The Bible is now on TikTok, vlog-style. Picture Davidyes, that David, of Goliath famewith an iPhone and influencer energy. Asked the guy to film it, but guess what? The camera froze, a wide-eyed David says to the camera. Threw one rock, dude dropped, no proof. Love that for me. He then urges his followers to like and comment. @holyvlogsz If David had an iPhone #hope #jesus #faith #david #goliath #biblical #veo3 original sound – Curious about Goliaths side of the story? Morning people, day 40 of standing out here. Still no challenger, he reports, camera propped up. He dunks his face into a bowl of ice water, channeling influencer Ashton Halls viral morning routine. Later, mid-fight, he pauses just long enough to update his audience: Okay, the kid actually knocked me down. What is happening right now? This better not be my last vlog. @holyvlogsz If Goliath had an iPhone #hope #jesus #faith #goliath #vlog original sound – The hey guys intros, the dramatic camera angles: Its AI-generated Biblical figures styled like your favorite YouTubers or TikTokers. Daniel vlogs from the lions den. Jonah records from the belly of the whale. Guys, the sea literally opened up. . . . Ill explain later, Moses tells the camera. And no, this path isnt on Google Maps. In family-vlog fashion, Mary announces her babys arrival, complete with PR gifts: Babys first collab? Well unbox later. @holyvlogsz If Mary had an iPhone #hope #jesus #faith #mary #biblical #veo3 original sound – The creator behind the viral account, @holyvlogsz, began posting just last month but has already racked up more than 435,000 followers and millions of views. His AI-generated content uses Veo 3Googles newest video generator, according to the hashtagswhich has startled the internet with its realism. Unlike earlier tools, Google DeepMinds Veo 3 enables dialogue, accurate lip-synching, and sound effects. The result is alarmingly lifelike. No one (hopefully) is mistaking them for the real thing. Still, for what some might call AI slop, these Bible story vlogs are oddly captivating. As one commenter put it: Hate how much I like this.
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