Podcasts to Spark Creativity: Generative AI for Hollywood and Brainstorming
I like to quote Tyler Cowen at the end of my AI talks: “…It will be a fascinating future. Very weird in many ways…” Harnessing the weirdness means we need to think creatively about generative AI.
Recently, I listened to two podcast episodes that did this.
The first one, which was amazingly creative, was Ben Horowitz and Marc Andreessen talking about AI and the Future of Hollywood.
They mention that most big new technologies (like the VCR) have initially been met with worry but have led to big opportunities and increased revenue.
From there, they brainstorm how AI could lead to an explosion of creative forces. AI could help writers produce, help actors write, and help producers create actors. Instead of killing jobs, it may open up many more jobs and opportunities to create great content. It may allow the creative geniuses to produce even more content and let more creative geniuses break into the field. It may help music, shows, and movies connect more deeply with people.
There is much more to the podcast. It’s worth a listen. And it motivated me to get my lab started in AI for business.
The next one worth mentioning was a special three-part series on Freakonomics hosted by Adam Davidson, the co-founder of Planet Money. (Here are the three episodes: one, two, and three.)
All three help explain Generative AI. (He calls it AI but is only focused on Generative AI. And I liked how he went out of his way to stress that the current state of Generative AI is not Artificial General Intelligence.)
He covers how close AI is to creating jokes and what alignment means. He interviews someone representing Hollywood writers (which is a good contrast to the Ben and Marc Show.)
I really liked the segment toward the end of the third episode with Ethan Mollick. He encourages us to use ChatGPT as a tireless and always eager intern. In the episode, they go through a brainstorming exercise to create a new business. This is a powerful use of ChatGPT and will continue gaining momentum.
A special thanks to Ehsan Khodabandeh for recommending the Freakonomics episodes.