A Reddit user called out an AI-generated ad they'd seen pop up on their feed, highlighting some of the obvious issues with the artwork.
In a post on r/graphic_design, the user was quick to point out flaws and issues with the image used in an advertisement for FoundersCard, a membership program that promises benefits in travel, subscriptions, and other perks.
They note one person's hand disappearing in the coloration of another person's skirt, and multiple other strangely shaped or placed hands throughout the image. Another person in the image appears to be walking very strangely, crossing his legs in front of each other as he strides.
AI imagery in advertising is still a lightning-rod issue. Apart from the fact that it takes work away from real artists trying to make a living, it also has a colossal environmental impact. The computing power required to operate the machine learning systems is immense and requires similarly immense amounts of electricity.
Creating one AI-generated image requires around the same amount of energy needed to fully charge a smartphone, according to The Verge.
While some groups are working to lessen that impact, the vast majority of the power used by AI farms comes from dirty sources like coal, gasoline, or natural gas.
Commenters were quick to point out how the errors made the ad feel less legitimate.
"People are always looking for extra fingers or glitches like the ones circled here," one said, "but it's usually easiest to identify these by the ridiculous, contorted ways people are often standing which make no sense in context."
"Another reason for graphic designers to be wary of utilizing AI is that I am mainly seeing it being embraced more rapidly by the lower-end tier of advertisers I do not want my client's brands to be associated with, get-rich-quick schemes or promises to lose weight fast that are borderline frauds," said another.
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Another seemed resigned to seeing AI ads everywhere.
"I've seen clearly AI-generated art in ads a number of times, by now," they said. "Truth is people generally don't notice those details, and the ad managers can experiment with dozens and dozens of variations quickly, to improve conversion rates."
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