AI or A-Why?

The Issue of Relying on AI and Why Some Companies Are Lawyering Up to Avoid It

TL;DR

My social media feed was full of caricatures last week. Funny images of friends and connections showing off their hobbies and professional interests – images dotted with funny dogs with extra-long tongues, incorrectly scaled but still recognizable Eiffel Towers. The trend of the moment highlighted how mainstream artificial intelligence tools are – and how many things AI has learned about us.

Elsewhere, AI has become a go-to resource for startups and companies operating on a shoestring budget. Need a new headshot? RuNi iT ThRoUgH AI!!!!! Need to bang out some copy for a proposal? RuNi iT ThRoUgH AI!!!!! Need to create a cute design for tomorrow’s social media post? RuNi iT ThRoUgH AI!!!!! It seems everyone these days is turning to their newest low-cost intern, Charlie G. Peetee.

Artificial intelligence is becoming a key player for any business that needs to play beyond its bench strength. I have a few misgivings about AI that I’ll share in a moment, but it would be foolish to dismiss the opportunity that AI presents in today’s business environment. AI’s power lies in helping team members complete mundane or tedious tasks, freeing up time for more complex assignments that require the power of human cognition.

Everyone knows about the old business axiom of wanting good, fast, and cheap – but you only get to pick two. Some businesses want the best, so they will always choose quality and speed, and are willing to invest princely sums in those worthy pursuits. Other companies just want to get shit done. “Give me an easy button!” they yell. And so, they choose cheap and fast. AI is a perfect resource for companies that just want to get shit done. If a business doesn’t care about thoughtful research and strategic positioning, digital dreck is just fine for cut sheets, social posts, and newsletter messaging. But buyer beware, depending solely on AI short-circuits the hard thinking a human being needs to invest to arrive at a solution that meets strategic objectives and delivers output.

As I write this screed, I’m watching a national news program with a lower-third banner that says, “AI JOB LOSSES LOOM OVER WHITE-COLLAR SECTORS,” and there is no doubt that news is a bit of a concern for some, including myself. Those cute caricatures that people were circulating on Facebook last week? There was nothing really artistic about them, and no one made a single dollar off of them. 20 years ago, you’d go to the county fair and pay an artist with a sketch pad $25 to scrawl out a funny caricature of yourself, maybe in a teeny polka dot bikini with pigtails and a surfboard. A fun, summer memory captured with a Sharpie in 15 minutes. That artist provided you a service, and they made a few bucks to pay their rent and maybe get the latest VHS movie at Blockbuster on Friday night. Now, people are just plugging in a few inputs, and intern Charlie G. is coming up with a wacky drawing. And the scary thing is – your preferred AI platform is learning more and more about you at every engagement, whether you want it to or not.

Now, take that analogy and apply it to graphic design. Or content generation. Or even marketing strategy.

When a business yells, “RuNi iT ThRoUgH AI!!!!!,” they are eschewing the talent and experience of professionals who apply their education, professional skills, and human cognition to create a deliverable that more closely aligns with your business goals. A smart graphic designer or content creator asks a few questions before they sit down to create a marketing solution for a client or colleague, and they also have the opportunity to refer back to thousands and thousands of hours of work they’ve fulfilled on previous projects and for prior employers. Professional partners can also sign NDAs and keep company secrets, well, secret. And that’s why many agencies and big companies are lawyering up to avoid risks associated with AI.

Some major businesses are placing a premium on their intellectual property and highly sensitive business strategies and are demanding confidentiality and security, insisting that vendors who work with them sign agreements that forbid the use of artificial intelligence. It’s an effort to protect brand equity and avoid copyright infringement and licensing issues.

When you use artificial intelligence to generate content, you typically have to feed in inputs, and anything you share with your preferred AI platform is released into the ether to be used in unknown ways in perpetuity. Consider it this way: would you publish your business plan, tax returns, or most personal secrets on the internet? Pouring your company’s business strategy is akin to the same digital exposure, and it opens you to a multitude of risks for the foreseeable future. Working with a human being to generate content creates a space for confidentiality, discretion, and security. In addition, the human perspective is what makes rich content rich – it conveys nuance that can elicit an emotional response and potentially compel action. The quality of human-generated content can wildly surpass that of artificial intelligence. If content is king, then creativity is its crown.

I would be remiss if I did not mention the many questions that swirl around artificial intelligence and its significant environmental impact. Generative AI is powered by data centers that use electricity powered by fossil fuels. Those data centers also generate a tremendous amount of heat, so they need water to stay cool and avoid tech stack meltdowns. The AP says larger data centers rely on five million gallons of fresh water a day – as much water as a small town with 50,000 people – that’s the size of Middletown, Ohio. Next time you make a meme or some content with Charlie G., think about taking a sip of water, followed by a big ‘ol sip of oil.

I’ll close with this: Last summer, I discovered the sheer joy of planting and maintaining a rose garden. Early in the summer, I chose some varieties with truly stunning blooms – roses of every color – a pretty pink-and-orange version called True Sincereity that is reminiscent of a sunset, and another hybrid tea rose called Blue Girl – the latter an homage to my alma mater, the University of Kentucky. After carefully planting those bushes on a ridge in our back yard, I’d spend every morning watering and meticulously reviewing each plant for any pests or damage caused by hungry deer. Powdery mildew became my mortal enemy, and I’d surveil the garden like a cowboy fighting vermin, a bottle of neem oil in my trigger hand and at the ready. In the evening, I’d inspect the roses and clip any blossoms that were ready for prominent display on our dining room table. The house was full of roses – in our bathrooms, in the kitchen, guest bedrooms, and living room. Taking care of 15 rose bushes became a labor of love, and I am already chomping at the bit to get out in the yard and prepare for this year’s gardening season, and the eight David Austin rose bushes that are arriving next month.

If you managed to read all of that, hopefully you came away with the pleasure I discovered while tending a garden. It was a paragraph written from my firsthand perspective and with the fondness of a budding gardener. Below is what AI generated when I asked for the following: Write a paragraph about the joy of becoming a gardener who takes care of a rose garden.

There is a particular joy in becoming the steward of a rose garden—a quiet, deliberate happiness rooted in patience and care. At first, you learn the discipline: studying soil composition, understanding pruning cycles, watching for black spot and aphids. But gradually, the practice becomes something deeper. You begin to anticipate the swelling of buds in early spring, to recognize the subtle fragrance shifts between varieties, to take pride in the symmetry of well-trained canes along a trellis. Tending roses requires both rigor and tenderness; it asks you to cut back in order to encourage abundance. In that paradox lies the true pleasure. Each bloom feels earned—not merely admired, but cultivated—until the garden becomes less a collection of plants and more a living testament to consistency, resilience, and care.

Meh.

TL;DR

1. AI’s power lies in helping team members complete mundane or tedious tasks, freeing up time for more complex assignments that require the power of human cognition.

   
   

2. Relying solely on AI short-circuits the hard thinking a human being needs to invest to arrive at a solution that meets strategic objectives and delivers output. Using AI misses out on the talent and experience of professionals who apply both their education, professional skill, and human cognition to create a deliverable that more closely aligns with your business goals.

   
   

3. Some businesses are placing a premium on their intellectual property and highly sensitive business strategies and are demanding confidentiality and security, insisting that vendors who work with them sign agreements that forbid the use of AI.

   
   

4. When you use AI to generate content, you have to feed in inputs, and anything you share with your preferred AI platform is released into the ether to be used in unknown ways in perpetuity. Think carefully before sharing anything important or proprietary.

   
   

5. The quality of human-generated content can wildly surpass that of artificial intelligence. If content is king, then creativity is its crown.

   
   

6. The use of artificial intelligence presents a real, significant environmental impact, and users should consider using it prudently.