The use of generative artificial intelligence (GenAI) has the potential to enhance human creativity by offering new ideas and creative possibilities. However, it may also limit creativity by anchoring the human creator to the ideas provided by GenAI. In a study focused on the creation of short stories, it was found that access to GenAI ideas led to an increase in writer’s creativity by 8% to 9%, as evaluated by third-party evaluators. The stories written with GenAI access were considered better written and more enjoyable, particularly for less creative writers with improvements of up to 22% to 26%. However, the analysis using embeddings of the texts revealed that stories with GenAI assistance were more similar to each other and the initial GenAI idea, suggesting a potential loss of the author’s own ideas. These findings have implications for researchers, policy-makers, and practitioners interested in fostering human creativity in various sectors.
| Signal | Change | 10y horizon | Driving force |
|---|---|---|---|
| Generative AI enhances creativity | Increase in creativity with AI assistance | Further development in GenAI | Pushing the boundaries of human creativity |
| GenAI ideas anchor human creators | Less creative output due to AI influence | AI influencing creative process | AI providing ideas and influencing creative output |
| AI-assisted stories considered better and enjoyable | Improved quality of AI-assisted stories | Increase in quality of AI-generated stories | Desire for better and more enjoyable stories |
| AI-assisted stories are similar to each other | Similarity among AI-assisted stories | Increase in similarity of AI-generated stories | AI providing similar ideas and influencing output |
| Implications for bolstering human creativity | Policy implications for enhancing creativity | Development of AI in creative sectors | Interest in enhancing human creativity |