Dr. Jitin Chadha, Founder & CEO, AND Academy
Gen AI needs graphic designers as much as they need the tech. So, the question of whether it will entirely replace designers almost needn't arise.
With its notable advantages such as enhancing productivity, streamlining tasks, and instant content creation, Gen AI has firmly established itself as tech graphic designers can rely on. But, the balance still leans towards those who can innovate creatively.
Gen AI's inherent user sensitivity leads to a direct correlation between the input it receives and the output quality, putting graphic designers right back into the driver's seat. Without a human designer giving it the right prompts, Gen AI-led software often generates designs that could be considered, at best, average - an amalgamation of past creations rather than pushing the boundaries of what's possible.
The efficacy of AI-generated designs, much like most other new-age tech, relies heavily on human input and guidance. Tools such as Midjourney and DALL-E harness vast databases to inform their creations based on given prompts. While they offer graphic designers an avenue for exploration and inspiration, any output they generate requires significant human intervention to progress the design further, if not entirely. So, without the right prompt given by a graphic designer who understands the brief, Gen AI-led tools are unlikely to come up with anything of value.
Also, a graphic designer's primary goal is to produce effective and impactful visual communication, and Gen AI functions as a supporting tool, assisting in brainstorming and ideation. What it cannot yet do is assess whether the design delivers the message it needs to and if it can connect with the audience. So, despite AI's strides, human creativity and nuance remain pivotal to graphic design.
Definitely not. Gen AI's capability to generate images from simple language prompts enables graphic designers to bring their creative visions to life much quicker.
Moreover, these tools hold immense value for professionals already entrenched in the industry. Historically, new technologies have expanded designers' skill sets, enabling them to produce more refined products with greater ease and efficiency.
Just as the introduction of Adobe Creative Suite in 2003 revolutionised design workflows, Gen AI tools have the potential to streamline and enhance the creative process, making it more efficient and cohesive. Some ways in which Gen AI is here to augment the work of Graphic Designers are:
In the ever-evolving landscape of design, to remain competitive, graphic designers must adapt to Gen AI and learn how to use it to their advantage. This tech can speed things up, but it comes with limitations and bias, making human designers intrinsic to its application. And, that's not about to change unless Gen AI tools begin to independently think up designs.
So, the only graphic designers who stand to become redundant are the ones who refuse to embrace this new technology or the ones whose skills were limited to software operations. The rest have nothing to worry about!
Author: Dr. Jitin Chadha, Founder & CEO, AND Academy
