Shemaine Bushnell Kyriakides
British creative director and visual artist Graham Fink offered a thought-provoking look at creativity in the age of artificial intelligence during his talk at the 8th Annual Digital Agenda Summit in Nicosia.
Fink, known for pushing the boundaries of art and advertising, challenged the audience to rethink the role of AI. “AI isn’t just a tool,” he said. “It’s a collaborator.”
One of his most eye-catching innovations is an algorithm that lets him draw using only his eyes. “It’s not just the hand that creates anymore,” he said. “It’s the mind, the eye, and now, the machine.”
Fink also serves as the agent for Sophia, the world’s first AI robot celebrity, and he highlighted the financial power of machine-generated art. “AI-generated paintings are selling for a fortune,” he noted. One painting, originally estimated at $50,000, fetched over $400,000 at auction.
Collaboration is a recurring theme for Fink. He sometimes works with a Turkish Cypriot creative director and artist, Baris Gencel, on AI-driven creative projects, demonstrating how technology can bridge cultures and disciplines alike. He believes AI is pushing humans into a new phase of evolution, what he calls AIVOLUTION, a term he has copyrighted. “We’ll evolve into a new species, part AI, part human,” he said.
During his presentation, Fink showed an advertisement written by humans but visually created by AI. He pointed out that producing the same piece using traditional filming techniques would have cost far more and might not have looked as polished.
Despite the futuristic themes, Fink grounded his talk with a human message. As he closed, he asked the audience a simple, powerful question: “Who are you? The chances of you being born are billions to one, so don’t f*** it up.”
The presentation left attendees with both a glimpse of the lucrative and revolutionary potential of AI in marketing and art and a reminder of the uniquely human responsibility that comes with it. Creativity, Fink suggested, is no longer just about imagination; it’s about collaboration, evolution, and making it count.
