AI is for Gruntwork
Stephen Root in Office Space
My big struggle with using AI for creative work has been this: how do we harness the benefits of AI, while preserving our souls and not churning out slop? How do we maintain our humanity in an era with more and more AI-generated content?
These are complex questions we’ll all be grappling with for years to come, but here’s an insight that has helped me: always remember that AI is for gruntwork.
When using AI is disrespectful
AI is for gruntwork, but what’s the opposite of gruntwork? For me, the opposite of gruntwork is human connection. This is a core feature of creative work. Whether you’re an artist or you work in advertising, you need to connect with your audience.
This connection with our fellow humans is sacred. When you’re trying to empathize with others, to share your struggles and your experiences, to teach and inform, you had better speak in your own voice. If you use AI, people will smell it.
If you send a personal email to a friend that you generated with ChatGPT, don’t be surprised if a chill descends upon your relationship afterwards. The realm of human connection is sacred territory. If you attempt to tread these grounds using AI tools, you might offend the person you’re trying to reach.
Alas, most of what we do is much more mundane. And that’s where AI can help the most.
Most work is gruntwork
Most of us don’t spend all day connecting with people. Most of what we do is gruntwork.
Gruntwork is time-consuming, tedious, and low skill, but it’s also essential. It’s the necessary behind-the-scenes work for our larger projects and goals. Some examples of creative gruntwork.
Writing metadata, tags, or captions for content. You did the hard work of creating good content, but you still need to do chores like these when you publish.
Scheduling and project management. Many creatives are not strong at this sort of admin work. ChatGPT is very good at creating these templates.
Research and problem-solving. Most creative work requires figuring out a bunch of stuff you’re not familiar with. AI is simply the most efficient way to do this.
Emailing clients or collaborators for updates or approvals. Nope, this is not part of the sacred realm of human connection. This is just routine information exchange. People don’t expect to read your authentic voice.
In a nutshell, if a virtual assistant could do the task, try using AI. If you’re seeking to connect with someone, use your own authentic voice.