This piece examines the duality of AI in the creative industry: the challenge of staying relevant and the opportunity to redefine creativity itself.
A fortnight ago, I had a tubelight moment. Could Pakistan’s biggest industries, like the textile and agriculture businesses, be eaten alive by AI? If so, then creatives like me are basically sitting in a glass house throwing stones. A study states that up to 60% of the workforce is at risk of automation. That includes tractors, warehouses, transport… and let’s be real, half of adland’s “content factories” too.
The creative industry is in a state of full-blown panic. Copywriters whisper about ChatGPT like it is Demogorgon. Designers pretend they do not care, but I have seen the side-eye they give to Midjourney moodboards that would have taken them all night and three Red Bulls. Strategists are acting unbothered, but AI is spitting out “consumer insights” faster than they could even open PowerPoint. Everywhere you look, creatives are staring at their laptops like, “Did I just train my replacement?”
Here is my unpopular opinion: AI is not killing creativity; mediocre creatives are killing themselves by acting like AI is a rival instead of a tool.
AI is just a remix machine. It mashes up patterns, grabs clichés, and serves them back with a bow. That is why half the captions it generates sound like a remix of words, and half the logos look like a mashup of five you’ve already seen. Humans, on the other hand, bring rebellion. We are the ones who say, “What if we flip this upside down?” or “What if we make the villain the hero?” We also know when something is offensive, tone-deaf, or just plain stupid; AI does not. That messy, irrational, and beautifully human spark is still untouched.
I think what AI is really doing is killing the grind. Quick moodboard designs? AI. Fifty caption variations no one will ever read? AI. Those decks your boss will change at the last second? AI. And thank God. That grunt work was never what made this industry magical. The oomph factor was always in the taste, the storytelling, the cultural moments that make someone stop scrolling. If AI takes the busywork, good riddance. But let’s not fool ourselves; agencies are already using “efficiency” as a mask to sell mediocrity. Fast-food creativity. Cheap, quick, and slowly killing the industry.
But let’s not sugarcoat it: if you are coasting, AI will expose you. If your only “skill” is spitting out generic lines, then yeah, a bot can do that better, faster, and cheaper. But if you can tell a story that makes someone pause and reflect, if you can read behaviours and know which meme will blow up tomorrow, if you can capture the way a chipped teacup feels more authentic than a stock photo smile, that is still your superpower.
The future of creative roles is not extinction; it is evolution. Yes, roles are shifting towards strategy, storytelling, and babysitting machines. Your job is to know which one deserves to exist. The real danger is forgetting how to create without the machine. That is when creativity truly dies.
The part agencies are getting wrong is cutting entire teams and betting on AI alone. On paper, the math looks fancy: fewer salaries, more output. But the work becomes hollow. Sure, AI can churn out 20 ads a day. But if they do not move people, if they do not sell, what even is the point? Creativity has never been about flooding the internet with “content.” It is about relevance, resonance, and meaning. Agencies doing this are burning their future to save their present. Beige wallpaper campaigns are coming, and clients will notice.
This is why I actually think hybrid workflows are the new gold standard, but only valuable if humans stay in charge. Too often, they are just an excuse to cut talent, speed replaces depth. “Good enough” replaces good. AI is like the fastest intern ever, works all night, never complains, but has zero taste and zero ethics. Alone, it is useless. Guided by a human with taste, that is where the power kicks in.
And do not get me started on storytelling. Big-budget commercials might shrink, but high-impact stories are not going anywhere. They will just look different; maybe it is a TikTok series that sneaks into culture or a micro-film shot on AI sets with a script written from lived experience. In an era of deepfakes and disinformation, the rare story that is real will be the most powerful weapon. The platforms evolve, but the job stays the same: make people care.
So, if you are a young creative wondering how to survive in this chaos, here is the survival kit: do not waste your time becoming a prompt guru; the tools will change before you have mastered them. Sharpen your critical thinking, stay plugged into culture. Learn ethics, learn what moves people and how to see through the lies. Above all, stay adaptable. Tools expire, but taste, guts, and a point of view don’t.
Do not compete with the machine. Compete with the mediocrity it produces. Be the rare human who makes people feel something real. That is your edge. That is why clients still call you, why audiences still connect, and why creativity is not going anywhere.
So no, AI is not the death of creativity. It is just the remix button forcing us to level up. The only thing it really kills is mediocrity. And honestly? Maybe that’s exactly what this industry needed.
