If AI image generators are so smart, why do they struggle to write and count?
Generative AI tools such as Midjourney, Stable Diffusion and DALL-E 2 have astounded us with their ability to produce remarkable images in a matter of seconds.
Despite their achievements, however, there remains a puzzling disparity between what AI image generators can produce and what we can. For instance, these tools often won't deliver satisfactory results for seemingly simple tasks such as counting objects and producing accurate text.
If generative AI has reached such unprecedented heights in creative expression, why does it struggle with tasks even a primary school student could complete?
Exploring the underlying reasons helps sheds light on the complex numerical nature of AI, and the nuance of its capabilities.
AI's limitations with writing
Humans can easily recognize text symbols (such as letters, numbers and characters) written in various different fonts and handwriting. We can also produce text in different contexts, and understand how context can change meaning.
Current AI image generators lack this inherent understanding. They have no true comprehension of what any text symbols mean. These generators are built on artificial neural networkstrained on massive amounts of image data, from which they "learn" associations and make predictions.
AI image produced using the prompt "hyper-realistic ten hands on a picture with text saying hello." Credit: Midjourney, Author provided