You against the machine: Can you spot which image was created by A.I.?

By David Ingram, Justine Goode, and Anjali Nair
Dec. 30, 2022

We were told to fear killer robots. But the artistic ones are here first. 

Advances in artificial intelligence have enabled a wave of online image generators, which have ushered in a torrent of computer-generated images and artwork at remarkably high quality. 

AI-generated art has won prizes in art competitions, and it is actively being used by some content creators who might have previously used human illustrators, elbowing out artists who use more traditional methods and raising both hope and hand-wringing about the future of art. 

But how does AI art actually compare to art created by humans? 

NBC News used various AI services to create 21 images, each one imitating a subject of a photograph, drawing or painting that was created by a human. When they’re put side by side, it can sometimes be difficult to tell which is which, although there may be hints. 

Now’s your turn to guess: Which one did a robot create?

So now you know the state of A.I.-generated art at the end of 2022 — which, good or not, is definitely more advanced than it was a year ago. The next year will give us more of a sense of what will happen to artists, both at the keyboard and away from it.