TikTok is home to a circulating pool of many trends, but recently one trend has taken the app by storm: AI art. Users can create AI-generated portraits of themselves through filters, with the most common ones being themed after anime or dramatic paintings. While this trend has received positive feedback on the app, it draws its origins in the rise of AI art websites across the internet. These websites have been a source of controversy for many; AI art learns and builds off of original art that has already been posted to the internet, meaning that many instances of “randomly generated” AI art based on key words are actually quite plagiarized. “AI takes reference from the artistic abilities of existing artists in order to create their rendition of a form of art,” senior Eden Munroe said. “However, they’re still limited to a mechanic and repetitive pattern, as well as not being able to draw hands or feet. It’s interesting to see the way the world is evolving because of this though, and the art it creates is still impressive.”

Some believe that AI art can be a way for those who are unable to create their own art to express themselves. “There’s no doubt in my mind that making AI art is real art. It was a joy to achieve a result I couldn’t have previously,” said user @Suhail on Twitter, which has been at the heart of this spreading debate.

However, others have brought up to this point that if someone wants to create art, they have to start from scratch like all other artists. “Art is something special that takes time and work to perfect, and many spend years of their free time doing that. I think that if someone calls AI art the same as real art, they’re kind of disregarding the work actual artists put in to create their pieces, which can take hours or even days,” said junior Mia Manzella, who is an artist herself.

Regardless of controversy, it does not appear as though AI art will be going away anytime soon, as people continue to post their AI generated art online while the controversy spreads. No matter what, though, it is still important to respect the hard work artists put into their creations, whether or not AI art persists.