I’ve been playing around with the AI text-to-visual generator Midjourney, whose iterations on human words make the user feel they are working alongside a true collaborator. The results are impossible to direct but full of ideas that are a few associative leaps away from the prompts I give it. There’s no other way for me to think about it except that the network is taking artistic license with the subject.
Last week someone said a phrase that resonated with me, and I couldn’t wait to get home and see what Midjourney made of it. They were talking about the process of selling a business, and they said that if you just float with the tides generated by investment bankers and accountants, it will ‘crash you on the rocks of rich and sad’.
Above is the image Midjourney created in a few seconds to that prompt. Behold the wreckage of your business sinking beneath the waves as you wash up on a pile of gems and rubies, rich but cast away from everything you care about. I know a few people in this sort of position and I would be surprised if the image doesn’t strike a chord with them.
This sort of platform is super intuitive and could be picked up by a child at this point. That’s why my friend Briana and I have been developing free lesson plans to introduce students to AI concepts so that they can grow up to shape the technology, not just to use it. If any teachers you know might be interested in introducing AI concepts in their classroom, they’re welcome to test out our activities. I’d love to hear how it goes: