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    Retro Futurism

    Regarding AI content and how you can help with moderating


    Hi All –

    Originally I was open to AI and didn't want to jump on the hivemind bandwagon of overreacting to banning AI images. But now, after the dust has settled a bit, I do feel that AI images are not a reflection of anything meaningful here. Yes, they follow a human written prompt, but prompts can be very simple and the AI will fill in the blanks with randomized elements of what is essentially a database of stolen art. The art style is usually glossy, plastic and devoid of humanity. Yes, AI image generators aren't inherently bad depending on their use, and I don't agree with a "I see AI, I downvote" reactive type of mentality… but on a subreddit about a specific human perspective expressed through creative works – it really doesn't fit.

    So yea, AI art is now banned on the Retrofuturism subreddit. Sorry people having fun with AI generators, I'm sure there are other subreddits for that.

    The issue is moderating. Moderating is volunteer work, and everyone has lives. We're not sitting on the Retrofuturism sub all the time combing through posts. Personally, I respond to my mod queue and reports.

    However I'd like to remind everyone that I have a failsafe for this – an auto-mod rule that automatically removes posts that receive a certain number of reports. So this means moderating is effectively democratized in this subreddit. A report isn't just a flag for the mods – it's a vote to remove. Of course if this gets abused (so far it hasn't), I will increase the number of reports necessary, or remove this entirely.

    I only remind everyone of that because AI WILL slip through the cracks of the mod team, as a lot admittedly does. We really do depend on your reports and messages a lot of the time. And yes, I do get new mods from time to time to try and help but there's always an initial period when they are active… before they are much less active. Just the way it goes and I don't blame them at all.

    I'd also like to add most of the content here is fine. Bots seem like they have effectively been killed via my automod script which I've been sharing with other subreddits.

    My script – please feel free to share:

    https://pastebin.com/FbBxKSF5

    ​

    Thank you!

    by MyNameIsRobPaulson

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    22 Comments

    3. SandakinTheTriplet on

      I don’t disagree with the decision, but from a moderation perspective: if a post gets reported, but an image is real, how can a user prove that the image *isn’t* AI?

    4. BobTheHalfTroll on

      I’m glad to see a well thought out and measured take on the subject of AI content.

    5. hlessi_newt on

      my fear of Roko’s Basilisk requires me to advise against this course of action.

      Edir: Didn’t think a /s would be necessary here.

    6. ZacPensol on

      I completely support this. I’m not one of those fiercely anti-AI people in general, but I liken people sharing their AI art to someone telling you about their dream: everyone can do it, it takes nothing on your part, it doesn’t make you special, and only you find it interesting.

      When I come here, I don’t care about what someone got when they typed “give me picktur of retro futurizms so I can get reddit votes”, I want an artist’s clever vision. 

    8. Oknight on

      Now I’m wondering what happens if you just prompt Midjourney or something with “Retrofuturism”

    9. freylaverse on

      I’d like some clarification if that’s alright. What about AI-assisted art that wasn’t entirely generated? For example, if I did a sketch, fed it into an AI to get some base colours down, and painted details over the output, would that be allowed?

    10. HatsusenoRin on

      Agreed, AI image in this particular sub is like synthetic wine. It sure looks similar but the whole meaning is lost.

    12. itsaride on

      You need to update the posting guidelines in old.reddit too.

      It currently doesn’t mention AI at all.

    13. chillaxinbball on

      > Yes, they follow a human written prompt, but prompts can be very simple and the AI will fill in the blanks with randomized elements of what is essentially a database of stolen art.

      This is a common misconception. Ai learns, it doesn’t steal. If you are referring to ai models that used copyrighted materials, there are Ai generators out now that haven’t used any that it didn’t have permission to use.

      Also, since you do allow contemporary works, where is the line? If someone made a spaceship with a man in a spacesuit the front of it but ai generated the background, would that be banned? What if they drew a spaceman holding a phaser and generated the energy cell pouch?

    14. Misha_Vozduh on

      I support this change for reasons that barely have anything to do with AI.

      I subbed because I was interested to see, specifically, how *people in the past* imagined the future.

      Even with very pro-AI sentiment of ‘it’s a tool, same as a pencil’, I’m not interested to see what *people in the present* do with it.

    15. innovate_rye on

      we came here for actual retrofuturism, not actual futuristic inventions to mimic retrofuturistic styles

    18. TheTench on

      A real shame that we seem to have this new schism in the art world. Personally if an image is rad, if it can transport me someplace else, then it is good. I dont really need to judge how it’s made.

      I can see it from the traditional artist perspective tho, not wanting to have your life’s work devalued, your livelihood threatened.

      I’ve been getting some heat for posting one of my AI hybrid paintings over on r/robocop. Interesting discussion arguing the merits back and forth here:

      https://www.reddit.com/r/Robocop/comments/19ccgxn/robocop_fan_art/kj0mqmw/?context=3

    22. Omegagon on

      I’m a retro futuristic electronic musician. I know that people with no musical ability are flooding my space with AI generated beats and elevator music.

      I do not fear AI though because I have faith in my own abilities. I see often people fear change but there is nothing to fear but fear itself. The past and the future is now. It has always been this way.

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