Collective creativity in hybrid societies

Research suggests that Generative AI is reshaping cultural artifact creation and circulation, impacting the understanding of creativity. The debate around AI's cultural enrichment or impoverishment stems from conflating 'novelty' (a property of single artifacts) and 'diversity' (a property of populations). This analysis posits that creativity, in the context of generative AI, is best understood as a characteristic of 'hybrid collectives'—interactions between people and algorithms—rather than individuals. AI-assisted ideation tends to increase individual output novelty but can reduce overall diversity, though this outcome is not unavoidable.

Why it matters

This insight is strategically important as it reframes the understanding of creativity in an AI-driven world, moving beyond individual output to consider systemic interactions. Organizations must comprehend how AI influences both the uniqueness of individual contributions and the overall breadth of ideas within their operational ecosystems to maintain innovation and competitive advantage.

Key insights

• Generative AI is transforming the creation and dissemination of cultural artifacts and altering the understanding of creativity.
• Disagreement over whether AI enriches or impoverishes culture often arises from conflating 'novelty' (individual artifact quality) and 'diversity' (population-level characteristic).
• Creativity in the generative AI era is best conceptualized as a property of 'hybrid collectives'—systems where people and algorithms interact.
• AI-assisted ideation consistently enhances the novelty of individual outputs.
• There is a observed trend for AI-assisted ideation to narrow diversity at the aggregate level, though this is not presented as an inevitable outcome.

Source

arXiv — Computers and Society — https://arxiv.org/abs/2609.02620