This article was created in partnership with HISCOX.
AI could take over the world, and many occupations with it, we’re told. But in the advertising and creative sector, this disruptive new technology is much more likely to enhance, not destroy jobs. Designers, ad people and copywriters can use it to be even more inventive and help them to work faster and smarter. There are some pitfalls to using generative AI, however, which could have huge consequences for the unwary.
The advertising business has already woken up to AI’s potential. “Agencies are already using AI to help ideation, because pitching often costs a lot of money with no guarantee of a return. Minimising these expenses are a huge benefit to agencies,” said Max Tipper (pictured), head of media at Hiscox UK.
It is also being used to generate content. “Using AI as a writing tool has attracted a lot of attention, but creating banner ads on the fly for smaller businesses is probably the most promising use of the technology in the ad industry at this time,” Tipper added.
Possession is nine-tenths of the law, but do you own a great image, idea, or slogan that AI helped you create? Navigating the intellectual property rights for AI-generated content can be a legal minefield, especially when using open-source technology for campaign creation.
“Who owns what AI generates is quite murky at the moment,” said Tipper. “This is a huge obstacle for an agency which creates a new logo, trademark or strapline using AI, because if it can’t be protected, then it’s worthless.”
Using generative AI in a global ad campaign is made more complicated because different countries have opposing views on whether AI-generated work can be protected. A recent court ruling in the US stated that it can’t be copyrighted, whereas the UK courts seem to be more amenable to the idea.
There’s also the danger that what the software produces might imitate others’ work, whose rights are protected, leaving an agency vulnerable to legal action.
“It’s no secret that the large-language models which underpin these generative AI tools were trained by feeding them lots of information scraped from the internet without necessarily getting the owners’ permission,” said Tipper.
Getty Images has taken legal action against Stability AI, alleging that Stability used the picture agency’s images to train its model without permission, and that the images it subsequently generated, as a result, are essentially imitations of Getty photos.
“It’s something creatives need to be very careful of, because they probably won’t know whose work was used to train the AI model they’re using, or whether the company behind it has got permission to use it,” Tipper shared.
For Tipper, honesty is the best policy.
“My advice to creatives is to tell their clients and their customers up front that they’re using this technology to help devise their campaigns,” he said. “I understand why telling your clients that you are using AI might be tough, but it’s going to be a lot less awkward having that conversation at the beginning than if someone makes an allegation against a campaign that’s already been launched.”
Also, remember that AI is meant to enable computers to think like humans, not instead of them. “Train your staff on how to use it appropriately so they understand the risks before letting them loose on it,” Tipper stated. “And be sure to have someone sense-check its output, because AI models have been known to ‘hallucinate’ or lie. If the model is badly trained then it will make bad decisions, just like a person.”
Although AI is new, the risks it poses aren’t. “Disputes about using someone else’s work without their permission have always occurred in the creative sector,” said Tipper, “which established media insurers are well-versed in dealing with.”
Hiscox has been protecting global media and creative firms for over 30 years and has built a wealth of experience not only in paying claims quickly and fairly, but also advising agencies on how to deal with the fallout from an intellectual property dispute.
“If a problem hits the news, the danger is that losing one or two key accounts could destroy a small agency,” explained Tipper. “We have lawyers in our claims team who know the creative sector, have practised in it, and can help our clients emerge from a crisis with their reputation and business intact.”
This content represents the sole opinion of an individual and does not constitute professional advice.
For more information, speak with one of the team https://www.hiscox.co.uk/meet-media-and-entertainment-team
