This technique combines four different AIs into one to create something entirely new. It’s all 100% AI-generated. One AI is for the photo of Alan. One is for the “speech” about finding zen at Burning Man, a place Alan has never been. Another is to emulate his voice, which I trained with dozens of his speeches. This turned out to be rather difficult because Alan has one of the strangest speech patterns since Elon Musk. The last is video animation that maps his voice to the photo to create a video where he blinks, moves his mouth, twists his face here and there, skin movement, etc.

This art project explores that “edge” between what the ersatz and the actual. Right now, as of the exact time of publishing, we’re right on the edge of creating something that is 100% convincing. Actually, many many people will think this is real as it passes their own semi-Turning test, whereas advanced people in the art/video/CG/AI world will be able to detect some of the little “peccadillos” that feel a little uncanny valley. But, soon enough, all of that will fade away and no one will be able to tell the difference between what is real and what is not. Does it matter? This is the same “veil” between what is real and what is not real that I’ve always explored with my photography and other art projects as well.

And Here’s the Creation

Enjoy!

As for the tools (and I will add more info and screenshots and failures here soon), it was Midjourney for the photo of Alan Watts, ChatGPT for the story about finding zen at Burning Man, Eleven for voice emulation, and Studio D-DI for the animation that brings them all into the final video.

Also, perhaps you’d like to see some of my recent AI thematic creations. Enjoy!

– How Artificial Intelligence Interprets Bible Verses – 35 Holiest Of Holy Creations Of Artificial Intelligent Design
– 40 Street Photos From 4,000 Years of Time Travel
– 32 Nonexistent People At Burning Man
– 60 Stills from a Wes Anderson Sci-Fi Film That Doesn’t Exist
– 20 Entities I Encountered And Inspirations From DMT Reality
– 27 Tribes From Remote Villages In Papua New Guinea That No One Has Ever Seen
– 31 Burning Man art installations at Burning Man that do not exist

BTW, I started up a new AI Instagram @Trairatcliff account so I could keep my main Instagram more with traditional photography. Be one of the first to join! And tell your friends, but only the cool ones… not the energy vampire friends you are trying to get rid of. 🙂