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Zeina Zayour's avatar

ukhh.. i was hoping this would be my saving gace .. for a minute i thought maybe i can pivot a bit into a communications career, considering my career got demolished by ze president. (no offense to anyone who likes him, just stating facts here). i was seriously looking at jobs taht require video editing skills and wondering wther that's someting that i could do with AI. LOOOol.. its is silly a bit when we want AI to be our shortcut to all human skills that have taken a lot of time and skill and craft to perfect. I think it would always come out as a crappy product. it is both good and bad. I dont think it would replace us, but it expands and optimzes our skills and even our art. i keep changing my mind about all this though, this is what i think righht this moment ;P

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P.Q. Rubin's avatar

In a way, it's good news. AI struggles with video editing, so you won't be easily replaced once you have that job.

Who knows how we'll look back on the AI hype in a few years! It's obviously impressive and important, but it hasn't exactly replaced us yet 😅

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James C Douglas's avatar

I am a human being and a social animal. Art, creative writing, video essays and movies are a form of social communication between humans. Even though AI is a labour saving device, I have no interest in committing my time to consuming computer-generated content. Computers don’t know what it means to be alive or to feel, and I don’t appreciate their simulation of thought.

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P.Q. Rubin's avatar

Thank you!

I would mostly agree. Computers don't do anything by themselves. Everything they produce was first learned (or stolen, if you prefer) from humans. That's why AI output will look so human at times: because it is.

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James C Douglas's avatar

AI is theft and I hate it.

I hate to self-plug but I will: if you want to read handcrafted fiction full of soul, tension and human concern, please do check out one of my books. Like I said, I dislike self-promotion but if I don't do it I won't get anywhere.

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P.Q. Rubin's avatar

I'll allow it 😄

Hatable as it is, AI is everywhere. The more I learn about it, the more I recognize. I wouldn't be surprised if the majority of new books are made with AI these days.

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Seema Nayyar Tewari's avatar

I can honestly say that I have seen the world of STD, paging, and email, and now AI.

I just love the technology!

Gone are the days of trunk calls, lightning calls, and telegrams.

Just one push of the button, and the job is done! 😁

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P.Q. Rubin's avatar

Ah, "Subscriber Trunk Dialing"... I had to look that one up.

AI can still be used to compose telegrams and emails, if you're old-fashioned like that 🧓🧠

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Seema Nayyar Tewari's avatar

That, sir, is your prerogative!

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Bruce Landay's avatar

PQ, I always appreciate your honest assessment of AI tools and you do a great job of cutting through the hype and exposing the reality underneath. It’s interesting to see you try things and demonstrate the true ability of AI tools today, especially since you don’t have a giant corporation and a roomful of PhD’s to help you.

Thanks for an interesting tour of AI video editing and where the tools are today for a more average user. Keep these columns coming!

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P.Q. Rubin's avatar

Thank you!

I'm definitely considering doing more of these exploratory pieces. Turns out there's a whole lot I'm a beginner at... Currently on my list: programming, digital music, maybe design.

Who needs a PhD if you have an LLM? 😅

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Bruce Landay's avatar

I look forward to you sharing your new misadventures. Onward through the fog!

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Seema Nayyar Tewari's avatar

Absolutely! considering you did such a great job too! 😊

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Charlotte Pendragon's avatar

Thank you for sharing your insights, and I loved learning about your process, thank you!

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P.Q. Rubin's avatar

Thank you for leaving such a kind comment!

It’s unbelievable what AI can do these days, while new options seem to pop up every day. In a year or so, there will be much improved video apps and this post can be retired to a museum.

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Seema Nayyar Tewari's avatar

Hope not; hopefully there will be researchers in the future who will actually look for origins! 😎

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Seema Nayyar Tewari's avatar

Fantastic! Thank you. 😀

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P.Q. Rubin's avatar

You're welcome!

It's fascinating to see what a beginner can do with AI assistance. I'm confident professional videographers will be relieved to see the final result 😄

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Seema Nayyar Tewari's avatar

Indeed.

I was at the bank today and spoke to some lady, who was also waiting, with a child in her arms.

I spoke to her about mystery books and fairy tales.

I was appalled when she said her in-laws and husband told her to give the child the tablet! 😁

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P.Q. Rubin's avatar

I'm telling you, in a few years, the Prompt Generation will take over and the world will never be the same...

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Seema Nayyar Tewari's avatar

Heavens! Children needing a prompt to tie their shoelace?

Thank God I shall be dead by then! 😀

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P.Q. Rubin's avatar

Such a relief… 😬

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Krspeace's avatar

You are so right...it is either you cough up for an expensive text-to-video or roll with the laughable options...crazy progress every passing quarter though! Nice comprehensive piece!

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P.Q. Rubin's avatar

Thanks! I looked into NightCafé too, where I know you're quite active. Their video options look interesting, but they would fall in the expensive category.

I can't wait for some good free alternatives to pop up.

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Krspeace's avatar

I love Nightcafe but hardly ever buy a month's pro subscription...maybe once a year.

The problem with waiting for good free alternatives to pop up is that when they eventually do, the paid ones have upgraded as well so once again you look laughable.

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P.Q. Rubin's avatar

Definitely! As usual, FOMO is priced in 🥲

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Krspeace's avatar

Did you see Avatar.FX? I think it was released like 2 days ago: https://character.ai/invite/dep01Mxh

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P.Q. Rubin's avatar

I had not heard of that... looks awesome! If I ever start doing video myself, this would be a fun option.

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