Customer sparks debate online after noticing concerning detail on food packaging: 'Extremely disappointing'

Would you buy something with artwork generated by artificial intelligence? That's the debate one Redditor started when they believed the artwork on tea cake wrappers was created with AI.

While some users didn't mind if the artwork was AI-generated, many didn't want to support a company creating products this way. 

The Redditor posted images of two tea cake wrappers from Yunnan Sourcing in the r/tea subreddit. Both show depictions of Chinese landscapes. 

The OP said, "I'm completely against using generative AI to replace artists, because even if the end result looks great, the environmental cost of AI is unacceptable, and many artists are losing their jobs because of gen AI."

According to The Society of Authors, illustrators are losing their jobs, and their incomes are decreasing. 

While using AI for packaging material may seem innocent, AI is predicted to affect the job market. In 2024, CNN reported a survey of 2,000 C-suite executives by 

Adecco Group and Oxford Economics "showed that 41% of them expect to employ fewer people because of the technology." It's expected to happen over the next five years. 

As technology advances, it won't just be illustrators losing their jobs or getting paid less. 

AI also has an environmental toll. The UN Environment Programme explained that the data centers that power AI require enormous amounts of water for cooling: "AI-related infrastructure may soon consume six times more water than Denmark, a country of 6 million."

Many people worldwide are facing a water shortage, which exacerbates the problem. 

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The data centers also require significant power. Most of these still run on dirty energy sources. 

The UN Environment Programme noted, "A request made through ChatGPT, an AI-based virtual assistant, consumes 10 times the electricity of a Google Search."

However, AI does have the potential to be a real asset in conservation work. For instance, it's being used for habitat monitoring and wildlife protection. 

UN Environment Programme noted that powering the data centers with clean energy sources is one way to combat environmental harm.

Many Redditors also pointed out the environmental implications. 

One user said, "Generative AI uses way way too many resources."

Another user commented, "Extremely disappointing."

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