Artificial Intelligence and Storytelling
There’s no doubt that technology has changed the way humans not only interact but also experience the world. Although Machine Learning (as a field of study) only recently started gaining ground, AI systems and applications have been in use for quite a long time. From the world of finance to E-commerce, AI has revolutionized the way companies across the world do business.
Artificial Intelligence (AI) has been ingrained into our daily lives and routines without us even realizing it. From apps like Google Maps and Uber to virtual personal assistants such as Siri and Cortana, machines have pretty much become essential tools for survival. Many online customer support services provided by e-retailers are enabled through AI systems. Other apps such as Spotify and Netflix use AI to recommend videos and music to subscribers by learning their likes and dislikes.
With all the amazing possibilities AI provides across various fields, some experts worry about being made redundant as a result of the proficiency of machines. There has been a lot of debate about the role artificial intelligence will play in the future of storytelling.
The question here is – “Should storytellers/content creators be worried about A.I?”
Will video editors be replaced by machines? Will marketers and publishers rely solely on machines to craft their content?
In truth, all these are legitimate concerns – with AI applications already compiling bits of news and turning them into articles or speculating how well a piece of content will perform; there’s no telling what else machines will be able to do in the near future. Surely, it is easy to view machines as a rival to human storytellers. However, there’s more than one way to look at the role of AI.
As a company that places a high value on incorporating technology into the storytelling process, we see things from a completely different perspective. AI can enhance the art of storytelling if you let it. We see a highly collaborative future, where machines and humans co-exist to tell better stories.
For instance, in building story ideas for our clients (branded content ideas), we often consider tech solutions that enable these ideas to be executed more seamlessly. The question we pose to ourselves is usually – “how can we further draw in the audience with this idea?” AI helps us find answers to some of these questions. Through Artificial Intelligence, storytellers can craft more personalized content for specific audiences thereby directly increasing user engagement and even sales. Indeed, the possibilities are endless and we know just how to effectively marry technology and storytelling.
The greatest concern for storytellers, who are yet to harness the power of technology or more specifically machine learning, is if these machines will take over the entire storytelling process.
To that, we say, no! We believe that there will always be the element of human emotion that machines might be unable to beat just yet. Artificial intelligence is mostly based on probability which is informed by learned data patterns. As amazing as that sounds, until machines fully understand everyday human life, content will be crafted based on well-calculated guesses alone.
To tell greater stories, the best bet for content creators will be to establish deeper partnerships with machines. If machines can provide knowledge and insights on audience interest, humans will be more effective in churning out profound and emotive stories.
Wondering how we can use tech solutions such as AI to enhance your brand’s story? Talk to us!