Is OpenAI's new ChatGPT-4o image generator the end for graphic designers? — Weekend discussion 💬

There's a lot of hype building around OpenAI lately — and no, it's not about its latest $40 billion funding led by SoftBank. ChatGPT-4o's new image generator has caused a lot of fuss across social media, especially its Ghibli memes.

AI-generated images aren't exactly a new phenomenon in the tech industry; users could already create sophisticated art using Microsoft Copilot and ChatGPT, powered by OpenAI's DALL-E 3 image generation technology.

While their image-generation capabilities were insanely good at launch, users managed to bypass restrictions that prevented them from creating explicit images of famous artists like popstar Taylor Swift, leading to heavy censorship that seemingly lobotomized the tools.

Still, multiple reports emerged suggesting that AI-powered tools like Midjourney and ChatGPT had a high affinity for replacing professionals in the architectural and interior design space because of their image generation capabilities. Interestingly, while they could generate complex structural designs in seconds, a separate study revealed that the tools struggled to create plain white images.

However, OpenAI's new ChatGPT-4o image generator has seemingly set aside most of these doubts. For instance, the tool can now generate a glass of wine filled to the brim. Before, AI tools could only generate half-filled or half-empty glasses depending on how you chose to look at life.

Its unhinged and unrestricted nature seems to be a major selling point, adding over one million new users within an hour to ChatGPT. While launching the tool, OpenAI CEO Sam Altman indicated:

"People are going to create some really amazing stuff and some stuff that may offend people; what we'd like to aim for is that the tool doesn't create offensive stuff unless you want it to, in which case, within reason, it does."

"As we talk about in our model spec, we think putting this intellectual freedom and control in the hands of users is the right thing to do, but we will observe how it goes and listen to society."

As such, it seems that OpenAI is giving its users the freedom to make their concoctions in seconds. Everyone is going ham with the Ghibli memes on social media to the extent that Sam Altman pleaded for users to "chill out, GPUs are melting and our team needs to sleep."

I recently argued that ChatGPT-4o's unrestricted image generation niceness will be short-lived, predicting censorship on the horizon. But that doesn't seem to be a major concern among most users; job security is.

ChatGPT-4o is a major upgrade to DALL-E 3 to the point it can almost get away with lifelike receipts, only that it messes up the math and is too CGI (computer-generated imagery) looking.

Will ChatGPT-4o image generator replace graphic designers?

Aside from viral Ghibli images across social media, I have bumped into hundreds of posts by artists highlighting concern over their job security in the creative landscape with the rapid prevalence of ChatGPT-4o's image generator.

According to the posts I've seen, users are seemingly stuck in two parallel universes. On one hand, users are blatantly scared that their jobs are at risk, and may be fully automated using AI in a couple of years.

On the other, some users have seemingly embraced AI tools to their workflow and are even thinking about upskilling in AI. "And I'm only half kidding this really is the career path I chose xDbetter start learning AI then I guess xD," a Reddit user indicated.

Welp that's my 4 year degree and almost a decade worth of Graphic Design down the drain... from r/singularity

The topic of AI taking jobs from humans isn't new. Last year, coders were constantly on the spotlight as the first profession on the AI chopping block.

NVIDIA CEO Jensen Huang indicated that coding might be dead in the water, recommending biology or farming as alternative career paths for the next generation with the rapid advancement and adoption of AI. Interestingly, Cursor AI recently refused to generate code for a user, indicating that "generating code for others can lead to dependency and reduced learning opportunities."

Artists have been quick to point out errors in AI-generated imagery, potentially a blatant attempt to display their skill sets and superiority over AI tools.

"I mean the angle looks completely wrong. He looks like he's flipping a pancake. Your sketch makes a lot more sense," a Reddit user commented on an AI-generated image. "While I believe you have a point. 99% of people wouldn't notice nor care."

End of graphic designers..... from r/OpenAI

To that end, AI's impact on jobs remains unclear, but even Microsoft's co-founder Bill Gates believes AI will replace humans for most things while creating a 2-day work week opportunity for professionals.

On the other hand, X owner and billionaire Elon Musk claims AI will steal jobs from humans, turning work into a hobby, and that people will only go to work out of personal fulfillment.

That said, it's apparent that jobs are rapidly evolving in the AI era. As clearly highlighted by a Reddit user, AI isn't the end of engineers, animators, or designers:

"It will just make companies hire 2 designers instead of 4. Because, both can use AI to deliver tasks faster and easily. Nothing is dead, but its evolving, just like how things have been from last 30-40 years."

So, I'd like to pose the same question to Windows Central's audience. What are your thoughts on the future of graphic designers and illustrators in the AI era rife with sophisticated image generator tools like ChatGPT-4o?

Share your thoughts in the comments.