Tool or Terror? Exploring AI-Induced Tensions in Creative Industries

Creative industries are constantly looking for new ways to bring novelty to their creative products by adopting emerging technology. The recent adoption of Artificial Intelligence (AI) in creative industries has resulted in tensions between creative organisations, creative workers and consumers, but are yet to be explored in research. Therefore, we aim to explore how AI is generating tensions between stakeholders in South Korean creative industries and how to navigate them. Data was generated through semi-structured interviews and case studies conducted in various Korean creative organisations. Our current analysis has identified the Creative Product Authenticity Tension, highlighting the conflict between organisations’ goals to implement AI to improve the efficiency of the creative process while consumers want authentic human creativity. The findings suggest that creative organisations should actively manage the tensions by either engaging consumers directly with AI-based content and features or obfuscating the involvement of AI in their products.