AI has moved the idea of derivative work into the headlines. After all, originality makes the greats great, or does it?

“Great Artist Steal” – Steve Jobs

I mean, think of all the original work we love—music, movies, tv, and art that genuinely shaped us.

Art is about the creation of something, and something sometimes comes from something. That something original becomes in itself a new art form.

The best part is sometimes a cover, a recreation of what we love and believe – but it also comes from sampling what we like and love but just the right taste.

But don’t go too far. A sample is good, but too much could be a copy.

But let’s not forget. Real artists steal, right? And art is about creating something not just new but from what we learn or acquire. I learned to write from reading and typing – Now is the time for all good men to come to the aid of your country. 

I mean, when do we, as humans, get caught up with the past? Not us. Nostalgia never gets the best of us – but even if it did, we would make it better, and better, and better, and better, and better, and better, and better, and better, right?

So how dare AI copy all these original ideas we have!

I think we need to protect everything and keep the web or anyone from knowing things like a world-famous authentic New Orleans Red Beans recipe. 

So is generative AI any different than our own derivative work? I mean, we can’t seem to figure that out – and sometimes, even some folks can’t find the fun in a little joke. Ideas come from so many people I know, so much I’ve read, and so much I want to know.

But maybe DALL-E and Open-AI find it kind of funny?

Originality is a really complex topic, and the impact of AI on jobs is scary. Shouldn’t we want the same inputs that allow us to create to be the things we feed the AI we use? Is that original work generated from the same tweets and arrives I read as derivative as my own?

In the end, we can all agree that copying can create some of the best art – or maybe we’re all just here for the ride.