AI-Generated Images: A Beautiful Threat

AI-Generated Images: A Beautiful Threat

By Janpha Thadphoothon

I am not an AI researcher, nor am I an expert in digital image processing. What you are about to read from me might be something you have come across already — that AI today can generate images so stunning, so realistic, and so eerily convincing that it blurs the line between what is real and what is artificially created. I would be surprised if you haven’t seen or heard about the latest AI-generated artworks, photorealistic portraits of people who don’t exist, or historic moments fabricated with uncanny precision. It is, I must confess, a development that leaves me both amazed and a little unsettled.

In my opinion, this is not just another harmless digital novelty. It represents a profound shift in how images are created, perceived, and, most importantly, trusted. What was once the exclusive domain of artists, photographers, and graphic designers is now accessible to anyone with an internet connection and a prompt.

Let me share with you a personal story. It must have been around 2023 when I first ventured into this AI image generation phenomenon. I remember being curious, as someone naturally drawn to the intersection of language, visual culture, and technology. I tried one of those free online AI art platforms, entering a simple phrase: “A peaceful library by the river at sunset.” Within seconds, the screen displayed a breathtaking image — one that could easily have graced the cover of a travel magazine or an art book. The colors, the shadows, the reflection of the sun on the water — it was all there. And it was beautiful. And it was fake.

The speed and ease of it were both exhilarating and disconcerting. What took human artists hours, sometimes days, was now produced in mere moments by an indifferent machine. I remember feeling a strange mixture of admiration and quiet concern. It was one of those moments when you realize that the world you know is changing right before your eyes.

As far as I understand, the underlying technology relies on feeding AI systems massive datasets of images — millions of them, sourced from the internet, often without explicit consent from creators. The AI learns patterns, textures, proportions, and artistic styles. It doesn’t understand beauty, of course, but it knows how to statistically approximate what we have historically considered beautiful or convincing.

Now, I would like to turn to what concerns me the most: the ethical implications.

First of all, there’s the obvious issue of misinformation. One could easily imagine AI-generated images of a natural disaster that never happened, a politician at a protest they never attended, or a celebrity in a compromising situation they were never in. The potential for disinformation is immense. In a world where people already struggle to separate truth from fabrication in text and video, adding high-quality, undetectable fake images to the mix is a recipe for confusion. I am sure you would agree that this is deeply worrying.

Secondly, I feel uneasy about the questions of consent and ownership. Many of these AI models are trained on images scraped from the web, often without the explicit permission of the photographers, artists, or subjects. Imagine an artist finding their distinctive style mimicked by a machine, with no credit or compensation. Or a person discovering their face, or one eerily similar, in an image they never posed for. It is, in my opinion, a violation not just of intellectual property but of personal dignity.

What’s more, there’s a deeper, more philosophical concern — one that, as a teacher of language and human expression, resonates with me. If images can be so easily manufactured, what happens to authenticity? What happens to the power of a photograph to bear witness, or a painting to reflect the inner world of an artist? Some might argue that AI-generated images democratize creativity, making artistic expression accessible to all. While I see merit in that viewpoint, I also fear the erosion of meaning when everything is possible, and nothing is certain.

In Thailand, for instance, while the conversation around AI-generated images is still relatively nascent, the potential implications are global. Different societies will wrestle with these issues differently. Some may embrace the technology wholeheartedly; others, like myself, might advocate for caution, regulation, and ethical guidelines.

As you might expect, major tech companies are already responding. Some AI platforms now watermark their creations or restrict certain types of image generation, particularly around sensitive topics like violence, politics, or explicit content. But as history has shown, restrictions can be bypassed, and tools meant for good can quickly be repurposed for harm.

One proposed solution is what cybersecurity experts call provenance tracking — a system where every digital image carries an unalterable record of its origin, including whether it was AI-generated. It’s a promising idea, though not without technical and ethical hurdles. I somehow believe that no technological safeguard is foolproof. Ultimately, the responsibility lies with us — as creators, consumers, and citizens — to question, verify, and think critically about the images we encounter.

I would also like to raise a point about education. Just as we teach students to be critical readers of texts, we must now teach them to be critical viewers of images. In an age where visual literacy is as essential as reading and writing, this is no longer optional. It is well known that young people, though digital natives, often lack the skepticism necessary to navigate such complex digital environments.

Make no mistake, the ability for AI to generate images is a double-edged sword. It has tremendous potential for good — from medical imaging and historical reconstructions to personalized art therapy and virtual tourism. I am genuinely excited about these positive applications. But like any powerful technology, it demands vigilance, ethics, and public awareness.

I am not suggesting we halt progress. That would be neither possible nor desirable. But I do believe we need to approach AI-generated images with informed caution. The genie is out of the bottle, as they say, and while it may grant us new wonders, it also casts long, complex shadows.

In closing, let me reiterate a personal conviction: the conversation about AI-generated images isn’t just about pixels and algorithms. It’s about truth, consent, creativity, and the kind of digital world we wish to inhabit. And in my opinion, that is a conversation worth having.

Janpha Thadphoothon is an assistant professor of ELT at the International College, Dhurakij Pundit University in Bangkok, Thailand. Janpha Thadphoothon also holds a certificate of Generative AI with Large Language Models issued by DeepLearning.AI.