Dave Eggers on AI and the Future of Creativity
US author Dave Eggers, known for his dystopian novels and literary activism, has warned that artificial intelligence poses an existential threat to human creativity. In an interview to promote his new novel 'Contrapposto', Eggers said: 'Once you have a machine think for you and write for you, you’re cooked as a species. That’s it. That’s the worst dystopian outcome there could ever be.'
Eggers, 56, has written more than a dozen novels and founded numerous nonprofits aimed at reducing barriers to literature and the arts. His latest venture, Art + Water, is an arts centre on the San Francisco waterfront that provides free studio space and mentorship to emerging artists, in contrast to the high cost of MFA degrees, which Eggers calls 'absurd'.
Life Drawing and Empathy
The interview began with a life-drawing session, a practice Eggers has organised regularly since the pandemic at the offices of McSweeney's, the publishing house he founded in 1998. He believes figure drawing cultivates empathy: 'In three hours of drawing a human, you learn so much about them and there is so much affection that comes from carefully trying to get them right.'
Eggers's new novel, 'Contrapposto', spans six decades and follows the friendship between two artists, Cricket and Olympia. It explores the relationship between talent and success, a theme Eggers has observed firsthand, noting that the best guitarist he ever saw was playing in a Journey cover band in Reno.
AI in Education and the Classroom
Eggers expressed deep concern about the integration of AI into education, particularly for young children. He criticised US Education Secretary Linda McMahon for referring to AI as 'A-one' in a speech promoting its use in schools. 'We’re in such a comical place right now,' he said. He recalled telling a 10-year-old who used AI to generate ideas: 'You’re one of one. Only you can think of what you can think of. Why would you cede that to a machine?'
Eggers and his wife, writer Vendela Vida, are part of two class action lawsuits against AI firm Anthropic for using their books without permission to train large language models. He called the term 'content' the 'world’s worst word' because it dehumanises writing.
Writing Process and Technology
Eggers writes first drafts by hand and transfers them to a Mac computer from 1998 that has never been connected to the internet. He uses a flip phone and only installed internet at home during the pandemic. To escape online distractions, he writes on a boat in San Francisco Bay with no phone reception.
Despite his criticism of AI, Eggers engaged in a productive discussion with OpenAI's Sam Altman. He noted that 'the maniacal illusions of a few of the people at the very top are not always shared by the rank-and-file' and that 'there’s no such thing as AI art. Only humans can create art.'
