𝗨𝗧𝗢𝗣𝗜𝗔 𝗢𝗥 𝗗𝗬𝗦𝗧𝗢𝗣𝗜𝗔?

The reality of gen-AI freeing up time

For those embracing AI in workflows—and not being displaced—the promise is clear: ditch the grunt work, reclaim time. Sounds utopian. But what happens to that freed-up time?

𝗨𝗧𝗢𝗣𝗜𝗔

AI unlocks ideation, experimentation, and refinement. With all this reclaimed time, we can achieve perfection, be empowered beyond prior limits of experience, knowledge, or tools—or work a 4-day week, OMG! Displaced workers will pivot to promised new roles: creators, strategists, innovators.

𝗗𝗬𝗦𝗧𝗢𝗣𝗜𝗔

Entry-level jobs are vanishing, down 25% in a year, per recent reports.

Hard-won skills erode in value.

Creative technophobes will struggle (but hey, AI is much more accessible than web3/blockchain—I’ve worked in both).

I remember a debate from my time at art school: craft vs. art? High-concept artists ideate (without skills); craftspeople execute with mastery (but lack true art). Now, commercial creatives face a similar split—the new reality: “ideation artists” + AI as the skilled labor.

But campaigns chase ROI and meeting objectives, not beauty or personal creative satisfaction. Freed time? Expect 2×, 4×, 10× output demands at the same cost/time. Assembly-line pace risks “AI slop”, shallow, soulless work. Not to mention higher burnout risk. Can we, even with the help of AI, produce the best ideas if we don’t spend time actually thinking them through and understanding our clients' needs?

𝗥𝗘𝗔𝗟𝗜𝗧𝗬 𝗖𝗛𝗘𝗖𝗞

The needle is tilting toward dystopia while promising utopia. New opportunities emerge, but for a fraction of the displaced. 

Entry-level roles, grads, internships? Exceptions, not norms. 

Yet the upside is real:

 • Skills democratize; anyone can now prototype, test, and ship ideas at speed.

 • AI-natives with nothing to lose will birth tomorrow’s champions and new industries we can’t yet name.

 • Intellectual laziness? Yes, possible, but also mental off-loading that frees bandwidth for deeper strategy, empathy, and human insight. Let's be more Eloi and less Morlock. 

 • Fulfilment tied to volume? Only if we let it. We can redefine value around impact, not output.

𝗖𝗢𝗡𝗖𝗟𝗨𝗦𝗜𝗢𝗡

But I’m a bloody-minded optimist and I am not alone. I’ll push back on the quantity-vs-quality time debate with every fiber of my being.

We have an opportunity to hunt new angles and opportunities with each development.

AI isn’t the end; it is a punctuated equilibrium moment—a Cambrian explosion meets an inflection point (and hopefully not the start of a technological singularity).

I plan to evolve and survive… But, I don’t yet know into what.

𝗪𝗵𝗮𝘁 𝘀𝗶𝗱𝗲 𝗮𝗿𝗲 𝘆𝗼𝘂 𝗯𝗲𝘁𝘁𝗶𝗻𝗴 𝗼𝗻? 𝗨𝘁𝗼𝗽𝗶𝗮, 𝗱𝘆𝘀𝘁𝗼𝗽𝗶𝗮, 𝗿𝗲𝗮𝗹𝗶𝘀𝘁 𝗺𝗶𝗱𝗱𝗹𝗲?

𝗜𝘀 𝘆𝗼𝘂𝗿 𝗻𝗲𝘄 𝗲𝗻𝘃𝗶𝗿𝗼𝗻𝗺𝗲𝗻𝘁 𝗳𝗼𝗿𝗰𝗶𝗻𝗴 𝘆𝗼𝘂 𝘁𝗼 𝗲𝘃𝗼𝗹𝘃𝗲? 𝗜𝗳 𝘀𝗼, 𝗶𝗻𝘁𝗼 𝘄𝗵𝗮𝘁?

hashtag#𝗔𝗜 hashtag#𝗙𝘂𝘁𝘂𝗿𝗲𝗢𝗳𝗪𝗼𝗿𝗸 hashtag#𝗖𝗿𝗲𝗮𝘁𝗶𝘃𝗶𝘁𝘆 hashtag#𝗜𝗻𝗻𝗼𝘃𝗮𝘁𝗶𝗼𝗻