As artificial intelligence steadily finds its way into nearly every industry, creative professionals once thought to be irreplaceable are now fighting to keep their voices, visions, and value in a world where algorithms often cost less and promise more.

In Poland, freelance journalist and cultural commentator once presented a popular morning show on Radio Kraków. She interviewed artists, activists, and even covered the Russian invasion of Ukraine. But in 2024, she was let go, along with a dozen other part-timers, as the station struggled financially.

Soon after, Radio Kraków launched a controversial "experiment", AI avatars hosting shows, including a live "interview" with deceased Nobel laureate Wisława Szymborska. The outrage was immediate. “Radio is created by people, for people. You can’t replace real experiences and emotions with avatars,” she argued. Even worse, an AI character was assigned to cover queer issues replacing a real, queer journalist who had just been laid off.

The backlash was fierce. Thousands signed a petition, and eventually the AI shows were scrapped. But the wounds both ethical and emotional remain.

In Indonesia, a talented illustrator built a career designing anime-style characters. But when AI tools like Midjourney emerged, everything changed. Once flooded with 15 commissions a month, she now gets barely five.

Even worse, her art was stolen, tweaked by AI, and used to create inappropriate images of her own characters. “Copyright laws are weak, and now AI makes theft harder to trace,” she says.


With platforms encouraging the use of AI, and even the government opting for AI-generated art over real talent, this artist is being edged out of the very industry she fought to enter. Now she’s turning to cosplay prop-making just to survive.

Raised in a home without television, a British woman always dreamt of writing. After years of secretarial jobs, she finally landed her dream role, writing content for a garden centre. She wrote blogs, interviewed horticulturists, and thrived in a role that brought joy and purpose.

But within a year, she overheard her boss say, “Just put it in ChatGPT.” Soon, she was reduced to proofreading machine-written articles. Despite being reassured her job was safe, she was let go just before Christmas.

Now working as a PA in cancer research, she reflects: “AI scares the hell out of me. I regret going into copywriting. I should have spent more time with my dying mother instead of chasing a dream that AI would take away.”

These stories are not simply about layoffs. They’re about people who poured their hearts into what they did. AI hasn’t just replaced tasks; it has undermined livelihoods, silenced voices, and stripped meaning from careers built on emotion, identity, and human connection.

No regulation. No accountability. No empathy.

As we marvel at the efficiency of machines, we must ask: What do we lose when we replace the soul of storytelling, the brushstroke of imagination, and the truth of lived experience with lines of code?


Source / Image Credit : The Guardian, LinkedIn