AI Protect Art

Design & Development

Jan - April 2024

(00)
Initial Challange

Develop a solution that empowered artists to retain ownership and control over their AI-generated work while streamlining client collaborations
Aimed at giving artists control over their AI-generated work andsaving them time when working with clients

Process Framework

(1.0)
Discovery period

- Environmental Scan
- Secondary Research
- Primary Research
How might we develop a platform that protects and advocates for the rights of creatives (musicians and/or visual artists) while holding AI companies ethically responsible, building trust and forging a long-term relationship between them?

(1.1)
Secondary Research

Legal Gray Area
AI companies often operate within a legal gray area regarding the use of creative works for training AI models. Current laws do not always require compensation or permission from creators, leading to ethical concerns.
Data Requirements
AI companies typically require large, high-quality datasets for effective AI training. This preference poses a barrier to entry for partnering with AI companies for start-ups that may lack access to such extensive datasets.
Impact on Creatives
Different creative disciplines experience varying impacts from AI adoption. Visual artists, such as illustrators and game designers, have faced significant disruption due to the rapid advancement of generative AI technologies. In contrast, musicians have integratedAI more gradually over the past decade, influencing their creative processes differently.

(1.2)
Primary Research

Surveys
A initial survey was distributed across various creative professions, we received 29 respondents.
Interviews
In-depth interviews were conducted with key stakeholders, including a copyright lawyer, creatives from diverse disciplines, a radical techno-optimist, and a researcher specializing in the experiences of visual artists in Toronto. These interviews provided qualitative insights into the legal, ethical, and professional implications of AI in the creative industries.
Business Model Canvas (BMC) and Viable System Model (VSM)
By creating these models, we were able to map out the strategic and operational aspects of the business, identify strengths and weaknesses ,and refine our approach based on real-world applicability.

Finding part 1

These respondents are distributed across different creative industries, years of experience in the field, and hours dedicated to creative work.

Finding part 2

Through the survey, we were able to dive into AI’s usage and impact in the creative practice, as well as creatives’ perception toward the future of AI and creative industry.

Finding part 3

Through analysis across different factors, we uncovered more insightful findings that differentiate creatives that do not use AI and use AI in their practice.

(1.3)
Environmental Scan

Evolving Licensing Models for AI Training
New licensing frameworks are emerging to address the challenges of using copyrighted materials in AI training, balancing creator compensation with developer access. These models aim to harmonize market demands and legal requirements.
Ethical Tech Movement
The Ethical Tech Movement urges companies to prioritize AI ethics, data privacy, and sustainability. Public concern and regulations drive transparent practices and stricter ethical guidelines to build trust and compliance.
Economic Impact and Market Growth
Generative AI is transforming industries, automating entry-level roles in entertainment, and driving market growth of 42%, projected to reach $1.3 trillion by 2032 (Bloomberg Intelligence). Mid-career professionals are pivotal in adopting these tools, shaping business strategies.
Social Implications and Organizational Response
Effective AI regulation requires improved collaboration between policymakers and tech experts. Organizations must prioritize transparency, risk assessment, and legal compliance. Protect Art addresses these needs with a platform designed to safeguard creative works in the evolving generative AI landscape.

(2.0)
Definition period

- Archetype Development
- Tension Identification
- Opportunities Formation
- Challenge Statement Refinement

(2.1)
Archetype Matrix

Horizontal Axis: The usage of generative AI tools in their work.
Vertical Axis: The reaction towards generative AI tools in their field.
Based on the patterns we discovered from the survey results along with our secondary research, we used archetypes to represent the distinctive motivations that were reflected in creatives’ behaviors and emotions towards AI.

(2.2)
Archetype Development

We decided to focus on Creative Idealogues and Early Adopters.
Following the 2x2 matrix, we were able to develop the four distinctive archetypes accordingly, with the percentage* of different archetypes in the total survey respondents.
As they have stronger reaction and are more involved in the AI-related discussion, we believed it is more likely for them to onboard with the potential solutions that we will propose. Besides, the strong reaction also might help us reveal more powerful and impactful tensions, which will lead to better solution ideas.

(2.3)
Tension Identification

From Tension to Opportunities
From the archetype analysis, we continue to identify the tensions existing in the archetypes. We outlined the future state that reflects the archetype’s deep-rooted needs and the current state or pain points that archetypes are facing. Based on that, we spot the fractions and gaps between these two states and laid out the tensions.

(2.4)
Finding Opportunities

Through this ranking system we found that three themes were at the top of both lists
Starting from the 12 tensions identified under the two focused archetypes, we created 48 opportunities to address these tensions. From those 48 opportunities, we then revisited our identity statement and evaluated whether these opportunities fell under the scope of Protect Art and were something Protect Art could tackle, which led us to 31 actionable opportunities for our client. Within the 31 actionable opportunities, we summarized them into 7 opportunity themes.
To further rank the 7 opportunities themes, we use two ranking systems. First, we considered the number of opportunities within each theme. Then, we looked at how many tensions each theme addressed. For instance,"Legal Support" contained 7 opportunities addressing 3 separate tensions. Finally, we landed on 3 opportunities.

Opportunity 1

Communities

Building a unified and supportive creative community

Opportunity 2

Education

Offering education and training in AI and legal fields

Opportunity 3

Legal

Providing legal resources and protection for creatives

(2.5)
Refine the Challenge

We realized that to solve this challenge and bridge the creatives with AI companies, we need to start with creatives first to build the foundation.
And we need to start with creatives first to build the foundation, and only after that, we will have the resources to negotiate with AI companies. The three key opportunities are the precursors and need to be dealt with first.
How might we develop a platform that protects and advocates for the rights of creatives (musicians and/or visual artists) while holding AI companies ethically responsible, building trust and forging a long-term relationship between them?
How might we give creatives agency to combat mistrust and lack of knowledge & transparency in a rapidly evolving AI land scape while ensuring creatives have a voice alongside AI companies to steer creativity into an equitable future?

(03)
Development

- Ideation Sessions
- Prioritization

(3.1)
Potential Solutions

After identifying our key opportunities, we came together as a team to ideate and brainstorm.
After spending multiple hours on ideation, we came up with five potential solutions: Database, Copyright Detector, Education Platform, Personal AI Model, and AI Assistant. To better understand whether these five potential solutions aligned with our key opportunities (community, education, and legal support), we used a Venn diagram.

(3.2)
Prioritization Results

Based on our analysis using the criteria of Feasibility, Viability, and Desirability, the following three solutions emerged as the most promising
These top three solutions were selected based on their alignment with key opportunities and their overall potential to be both effective and sustainable, leading to the development of our three-phased strategy.

(04)
Delivery

- Recommended Strategy
- Prototype
- Desirability Testing Result

(4.1)
Strategy Overview

Profit Model
Freemium with Add-on
We will use a freemium model to acquire a large set of initial users and leverage our quality service to encourage users to purchase our add-on services.

(4.2)
Protect Art's architecture

Protect Art's Architecture contains three phases
Phase 1 focuses on establishing the core foundational aspects of ProtectArt’s mission by focusing on the Education Platform. Phase 2 builds on the foundation of Phase 1 and introduces a new revenue stream by exploring the viability of the copyright detector tool. Phase 3 aims to develop a database to enhance the platform's viability and promote continuous growth.

(4.3)
Video Demonstration

Check the core function for phase 1

(4.4)
Aspect 1
Education Aspect

Feature designed strategy
Protect Art’s education aspect aiming toensure that no creatives are left behind by the AI wave.
Unlike Coursera, which is tailored more towards academic and professional advancement, SkillShare is ideal for those looking to enhance creative and practical skills through flexible, hands-on learning. Regardless of creative’s initial reaction to AI, Protect Art provides an equal opportunity for all creatives to access educational resources

(4.5)
Aspect 2
Community Aspect

Feature designed strategy
The platform specifically concentrates on creative and legal support, providing specialized resources and assistance tailored to users' unique needs
It includes a feature that awards badges for course completion and engagement, designed to recognize and reward user achievements in a structured manner, significantly enhancing their engagement and overall learning experience.

(4.6)
Aspect 3
Legal Support Aspect

Feature designed strategy
The strategy is considered that legal matters are a highly professional area, creatives often need legal assistance. Providing timely and accurate responses is the ultimate goal of integrity for these professionals.
Therefore we designed to focus on emerging legal changes in the complex area of generative AI, allowing creatives to explore the implications of these changes and receive expert input from lawyers.

(4.7)
Protect Art’s Customer Value Propositions

Value Proposition - Creative Ideologues
Empowerment and protection in the AI era:
- Accessible educational content about legal rights and responsibilities & the inner workings of AI
- Building a unified voice through community
Value Proposition - Early Adopters
Pushing the boundaries of creativity safely and ethically:
- Advanced educational content about AI and emerging changes in the legal landscape
- Safe experimentation with access to verified legal advice

(4.8)
Desirability Testing Results

Our results show 100% of users want an Open community forum for conversations with peers and knowledge sharing.
“First I would like an introductory contextualization about the basic concerns and legal support I would need in the future.”
“For myself, I would only take free courses, however since my company has education benefits, I would also like to pay.”
“I’m more of a goal target person, if the course can get me some certifications/real life benefits, I would 100% take it without doubt.”
“I’m not familiar with legal, but [I] would love to see some case studies/articles that my company can avoid in the future.”

(4.9)
Highlevel road maps

Once we had received our survey results from the wireframe prototype, we gained more confidence in the Education Platform and the range of features that it provided to develop acomplete implementation plan for Phase 1.

The high-level roadmap showing the four stages that Protect Art will be undergoing to build the foundation and develop the Education Platform in Phase 1 as well as explore growth opportunities for Phases 2 and 3.

(4.10)
Leadership Structure

We envision our client to be at the center of Protect Art and provide his time, passion, and technical expertise to carry out most of the key activities in the development stage of Phase 1 and bring in key partners where necessary. We identify that engaging with the creative community will be carried out in collaboration with community partners.

(4.11)
Future Phases

Phase 2

Phase 2 of our strategy involves developing an advanced copyright detection tool designed to detect copyright infringement.

This tool will cater to both individual creatives andAI companies, enhancing the protection of intellectual propertyrights and promoting ethical content use. This phase aims tobring in an additional revenue source and create connectionswith AI companies

Phase 3

Phase 3 focuses on the development of an extensive, ethically-sourced opt-in database of creative works.

Leveraging our community growth and the advanced copyright detection tool developed in earlier phases, we aim to create a robust dataset that bridges the gap between AI companies and creatives. This database will serve as a valuable resource for AI development, providing companies with diverse and high-quality data while ensuring that the rights and contributions of creatives are respected and acknowledged.

(4.12)
Design Process

(5.0)
Insight & Takeaways

Solving the right problem
Our client approached us with bold and diverse ideas. To ensure the time spent was worthwhile, we dedicated half of our efforts to understanding him and his organization. This allowed us to identify his needs and tailor a solution that was both practical for him and aligned with the desirability of his target audience.
A winning demo video is necessary
When starting a "zero to one" project, it is essential to create a prototype video, as it is visually more engaging and accessible than audio. During our presentation, after introducing the platform's functionality, the audience can easily understand the concept by watching the demo video and provide constructive feedback based on what they see.
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