Chat GPT here, image generator there - the possibilities surrounding everything related to Artificial Intelligence (AI) and what you can do with it are currently exploding. Creating images has not only become super easy but also incredibly fast. It is becoming increasingly difficult to clearly distinguish between AI-generated content and real photos.

In marketing, AI is being used more and more, and we are far from reaching the end of its potential. For consumers, it is becoming harder and harder to know what is real and what has been created by AI. Is this a problem? And what can we do about it? Enter a brand that is resisting this trend and setting an example.

Beauty in the Age of AI - Dove 

We went on a search and quickly stumbled upon a page from Dove itself, showing us that everyone is beautiful - free from algorithms.

Twenty years ago, in 2004, Dove, a Unilever brand, started the #RealBeauty initiative to portray women as they exist in the real world. Without filters and the like. But this is not just a stance; the company wants to provide evidence for it and thus uses the watermark 'No Digital Distortion' on all its images. In 2024, the brand is taking stock and examining through a study how views on beauty among women and girls have changed over the past two decades. The survey included 33,000 people in 20 countries.

The results of the study clearly show us what we need to do and where the world stands today. Here’s a direct quote from Dove:

"1 in 3 women feels pressured to change something about their appearance due to what they see online – even though they know these images are often edited or AI-generated. The rise in AI usage poses one of the biggest threats to beauty in the past 20 years. Therefore, it is more important than ever to show true beauty."

So our perception is faced with the challenge of not being influenced by artificially created content. Not an easy task, but all the more important.

We once asked Chat GPT to depict "the diversity of beauty" in a picture. 

We can see that different nations are represented and the picture is certainly "diverse". However, there is more to it and beauty is not fully represented. 

The Code by Dove 

Dove wouldn’t be Dove if they didn’t do more than just conduct a study. So what to do? Of course, a campaign. And share it across all channels and possibilities so that as many people as possible become aware of the danger we face. And this has certainly not been bad for Dove's image either.

Watch Dove's video yourself, form your own opinion - we find it a successful positioning: "The Code - a Dove film."

If you don’t get goosebumps from this. #KeepBeautyReel by Dove is probably the best statement in recent times about the dangers of AI that we are still unaware of.

Media Content Changes the Perception of One’s Own Body

All smooth, no belly, with great skin, tan, simply beautiful - that’s how people present themselves on the internet, on social networks. We are all surrounded by content that is edited and suggests a picture of beauty that is far from reality.

The fact is that our perception of ourselves, our own bodies, and even our abilities changes, depending on the content we are exposed to. What we see, we become - that’s how our brain works.

The psychiatrist Jacques Lacan studied this in the last century, of course without Instagram and Facebook. He pinpointed how even toddlers see and recognize themselves for the first time: "This is the original adventure in which a person first experiences that they see themselves, reflect on themselves, and perceive themselves as different from what they are. This is the essential dimension of humanity that structures their entire fantasy life."

What we see shapes us, changes us - and for teenagers on social media, that’s about 5,000 images per week that are seen and even interacted with. The phenomenon has been studied for a long time, even Facebook is aware of the negative impacts. However, not much has changed yet.

Deutschlandfunk has an article that explores this topic and provides statistics such as: ...30% of teenagers are concerned about their appearance. ...18% feel pressured by the social media beauty ideal.

Content on social media leads people to perceive themselves differently, doubt themselves, and no longer find themselves beautiful. There is also a link to the development of mental illnesses such as eating disorders being studied.

We compare ourselves too much - and possibly with something that has been artificially created.

Opportunity and Threat 

Anyone who reads, hears, or sees about AI today is confronted with the opportunities and possibilities: increased productivity, cost savings, new skills, and so on.

All of this is true, important, and crucial for the world to continue developing. But as always, everything has two sides - and the dark side is considered by critical voices to be more dangerous than wars or atomic bombs.

Whether rightly so or not - we’ll leave that open for now. Because one fact is: misinformation through AI is commonplace. This doesn’t just affect false news, fake headlines, and the like. But also content that does not correspond to reality - the wrong kind of beauty, for example.

We all have the responsibility and duty to think about a healthy, natural, and conscientious use of AI’s possibilities. One that does not make us ill. One that benefits us. You can read more about the risks and dangers of AI in the MDR article.

Summary 

The integration of various possibilities through Chat GPT and similar technologies can lead to a significant increase in efficiency. Furthermore, there are many new skills that can now be added to the team - without having to build up personnel. We are at a point where the world is excited about the gadgets of AI and eagerly awaits what will be possible tomorrow.

But we must not forget that this also changes us and that the artificial is artificial and reality still looks different. We need more companies that, like Dove, set a good example so that we can still distinguish between what is real and what is fake tomorrow.

You can find real, human-written articles on our blog.