The Creative Process in the age of AI: Amsterdam-Based Art Directors and their perceptions of AI co-creation

The aim of this thesis is to understand how Amsterdam-based Art Directors perceive changes in their creative process through human AI co-creation. There are existing debates in computational creativity research about the degree to which generative AI systems are creative, yet they lack focus on the user-perspective of interacting with these technologies, especially in the stages of the creative process. More specifically, there is a gap in research regarding co-creativity – the collaboration between humans and AI in the creative process – pertaining to the advertising industry and the creative professionals in charge of developing innovative advertising ideas. Through a qualitative research design using in-depth semi-structured interviews with ten Art Directors based in Amsterdam. A thematic analysis of the interviews reveald three key themes, along with sub-themes that helped answer the research question of the study. These themes offer new insights on the ways AI is enhancing the creative process of Art Directors, while also revealing existing concerns in regard to the rapidly evolving technology and its implications on advertising creativity and the advertising industry at large. On one hand, AI co-creation is improving the efficiency of creative workflows as a time-saving tool, which is crucial in today’s fast-paced advertising landscape. New opportunities for innovative ideation were also found in AI co-creation which enhance the Intimation, Illumination and Verification stages of the creative process through enhanced thinking, expressing, building, and testing. On the other hand, there is a need to balance the tension between human and AI creativity, mitigating AI’s perceived ‘soullessness’ with consistent human involvement and critical awareness of the technology. Additionally, participants in the study perceived AI’s role in the evolution of creative skills and jobs, and the need to navigate a rapidly changing professional landscape. As academia, the advertising industry and Art Directors gain a greater understanding of AI systems, they can better address these concerns and leverage the enhancements of the creative process by effectively combining human and AI-creativity. This approach fosters a future where AI is seen as a trustworthy collaborator instead of a competitor, allowing human vision to remain as the primary force behind creativity.