No Artificial Ingredients
An essay by guest columnist Michael Katz
Howdy, New Painiacs!
Keith Champagne has graciously allowed me to contribute an article to the New Pain Substack. I have created a number of books, including RIOT EARP (now on Kickstarter!), which takes place in the year 2055. I try to make it as realistic as possible, so I need to stay on top of technology.
My books always go the traditional route: I plot and script everything all by myself and have REAL PEOPLE do the art. I would never consider cutting costs and using AI to create my comics. But recently someone offered me some AI-generated pinups that I would not have even thought of otherwise.
I told Keith that I was thinking of using the AI pinups as bonus materials for my Kickstarter. Without any hesitation he told me DO NOT DO IT; I would turn away a lot of potential readers. Shame, because the samples were awesome, but I had to go with the advice from my comics guru.
I did look into the matter further. We all know that AI hurts the environment. It is created in data centers that use A LOT of water to cool computers and generate electricity. A ChatGPT search supposedly uses ten times as much electricity as a Google search. AI also creates e-waste because it needs special hardware that quickly becomes obsolete and gets thrown away.
I know that in addition to protecting Mother Nature, we have to protect artists. AI definitely puts people out of work. AI systems are trained by analyzing artwork from real people, and at some point AI won’t need them anymore. Hollywood’s Art Directors Guild was recently up in arms because Martin Scorsese said he would use AI to generate storyboards, directly taking work away from real people. Scorsese is the one who doesn’t like superhero movies, so screw him anyway.
One artist wrote that there is nothing wrong with AI putting people out of work because things like the printing press, computers, and the internet also took jobs from humans. Sure, that did happen. That doesn’t mean we have to go along with it.
Maybe there’s room for compromise? The National Art Education Association believes AI can properly be used to assist artists, but should not be used to steal from them. Many organizations have recommended a 70/30 rule that says AI should handle basic, repetitive tasks, which is supposedly 70% of all work, and humans would manage the 30% that requires oversight and creativity. I’m not so sure I agree with these numbers, and they are just a recommendation anyway. I don’t trust it.
Part of me is still torn, though, because AI can create really good stuff. As a long-time comic fan, seeing one of my favorite characters “brought to life” gives me a thrill. I enjoy those YouTube videos that cast actors from the 70s and 80s as Avengers or Justice Leaguers. I am also strangely entertained by these clips on TikTok where the creator inserts talking cats into old Kung Fu movies.
Look, I don’t have any answers. I’m content to avoid using AI to cut corners, and just wait to see where things go. I’m hoping that by 2055, the time of RIOT EARP (now on Kickstarter!), problems with AI won’t be nearly as bad as some people predict. In the meantime, we all have to pay attention so we can steer things in the right direction.
But I still want to watch those Kung Fu cats, darn it!
- Michael Katz, Strider Nolan Media
Note: no AI has gone into the writing of this article. Promise! I did use these sources:
Boehman, Craig. “In Defense of AI Art: History Repeats Itself, Again, Again, and Again.”
Dellinger. “Art Directors Guild Chides Martin Scorsese Over His Newfound Fondness for AI.” Gizmodo. June 10, 2026.
NAEA Position Statement on Use of Artificial Intelligence (AI) and AI-generated Imagery in Visual Arts Education. April 2024.
Penn State Institute of Energy and the Environment. “Why AI uses so much energy — and what we can do about it.” February 10, 2026.