Welcome to an audio-led edition of Unmade. Today we hear from Getty Images’ global creative boss Rebecca Swift, on the impact and risk of AI on creative industries.

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‘Business loves bargains’: Rebecca Swift on how generative AI could undermine creativity and consumer confidence

The growing wave of low-quality, mass-generated imagery is threatening both brand trust and the long-term viability of creative industries, warns Rebecca Swift, senior vice president of creative at Getty Images. Dr Swift warns that what she terms “AI slop”is on the rise.

In the podcast conversation with Unmade’s Cat McGinn, Swift said the deluge of generative content risks homogenising brand expression, eroding legal safety, and discouraging future talent from entering the creative workforce.

“AI slop” refers to the easily created, highly distributed output from generative AI tools, which is often divorced from original intent, training data transparency, or creative integrity. While acknowledging that the issue predates AI, Swift argued that the explosion in tools has made the problem more visible—and more dangerous.

Swift said Getty has deliberately kept its content library free from AI-generated assets to ensure provenance, avoid contamination of training sets, and protect creator rights.

“It would be easy to follow the money. But we chose to follow our values.”

She also warned that some large models are now training on content that is itself AI-generated, compounding quality and IP risks.

“For global brands, there’s no guarantee that marketers in different regions aren’t using content that breaches trademarks or contains copyrighted elements,” Swift said. “There are real legal and reputational implications.”

Consumer trust is also on the line. Getty’s research shows that while AI-generated content has become harder for the average consumer to spot, the appetite for disclosure has increased. More than 90% of survey respondents said they want to know when an image is AI-generated.

“We’re seeing consumers approach images with a default mindset of distrust,” Swift said. “That has implications not just for media, but for any brand that trades on authenticity.”

Unmade’s AI conference for media and marketing, humAIn, takes place tomorrow. Tickets are still available.

Correction: Dr Swift refers to Getty’s consumer research as beginning in 2003; the research began in 2023.

Today’s podcast was edited by Abe’s Audio.

See you at HumAIn - or in your inbox - tomorrow.

Have a lovely day,

Cat McGinn

Curator - HumAIn

[email protected]

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