Extraordinary Machines: AI And Creativity Summit Beyond The Binary

InnovationAIExtraordinary Machines: AI And Creativity Summit Beyond The BinaryByCortney Harding,Contributor.Forbes contributors publish independent expert analyses and insights. Cortney is an expert in smartglasses, VR, AI, and the future of work.Follow AuthorMay 26, 2026, 08:00am EDT--:-- / --:--This voice experience is generated by AI. Learn more.This voice experience is generated by AI. Learn more.Wes Hopkins of Adobe and King Willonius speak at the 2026 Artist and the Machine AI and Creativity SummitArtist and the MachineCurrent debates around AI contain much passionate discourse, but generally lack nuance. Artificial intelligence will either unlock a whole new era of human flourishing or take all our jobs and maybe our lives as well. When Nobel Prize-winning author Olga Tokarczuk admitted to using AI to brainstorm when writing, the backlash was swift; the literary journal Granta has also come under fire for printing a short story which was later determined to be AI-generated (although AI detectors often make mistakes and return false positives). Increasing numbers of creatives are taking a public stand against use of the technology in any form, despite the fact that it is baked into so many systems it has become functionally impossible to avoid.In the midst of this charged environment, the AI and Creativity Summit, produced by Artist and the Machine, sought to offer another perspective. The event, which was held at the Lighthouse in Brooklyn on May 14, brought together creators who are using AI to enhance their work and allow them to create more at scale. The general thesis of the day seemed to be that while AI can be used as a tool to make creative work, it won’t replace the humans who come up with the ideas and prompt it in the first place. There’s also space for a broader conversation about the intersection between art and profit and where AI fits into that. For instance, creative technologist Don Allen Stevenson III led a seminar where he built a little ret...