On May 12, Oscar-winning actress Jamie Lee Curtis took a secret feud with Facebook CEO Mark Zuckerberg to the public eye. In a candid and frustrated Instagram post, Curtis expressed deep disappointment in the platform’s use of artificial intelligence (AI) in advertising. Meta had been running an AI-generated ad featuring her likeness, all without her consent. Despite efforts to resolve the issue privately, the ad continued to run unchecked. According to an article by Deadline, the ad was taken down mere hours after her post. She later celebrated with an update comment: “IT WORKED! YAY INTERNET! SHAME HAS ITS VALUE! THANKS ALL WHO CHIMED IN AND HELPED RECTIFY!”
The battle over AI in our industries marks a pivotal moment in our cultural ethics. Deadline adds that Curtis had previously expressed her concern during the SAG-AFTRA Hollywood strikes in 2023. Other high-profile names, such as Tom Hanks and Scarlett Johansson, have condemned AI-generated content using their image. Many celebrities find the idea of AI threatening and intrusive to both their careers and autonomy. Countless small, independent artists despise it for similar reasons. You’ll find endless posts arguing that it’s a soulless, pale imitation of human creativity, only knowing how to steal art from the work of human artists. So, amidst all this pushback, the question remains: why is AI continuing to cement itself in our society?
The Corporate Love for AI
AI has continued to creep into the threads of modern society, embedding itself as a part of daily life. Companies often present it as “the future,” a transformative technology with vast potential benefits. In a Forbes Advisor study surveying six hundred business owners, they found that “A substantial number of respondents (64%) anticipate AI will improve customer relationships and increase productivity, while 60% expect AI to drive sales growth.” A belief in efficiency is what motivates the merging of AI in our workforce. As technology progresses, so do AI models and tools that promise quicker ways of enhancing outreach and productivity. In a competitive market, it’s hard to ignore an advantage like that.
Profit is another reality driving corporate adoption of AI. In an article by the Wall Street Journal, it’s noted that Microsoft “recently launched AI laptops that use dozens of AI models for search and image generation.” The company boasts the model’s compact nature. Its small size means it doesn’t need massive supercomputer databases like ChatGPT. Less data and computing power mean lower costs, which makes the continued improvement of AI more attractive. It can be integrated into our technology in subtle increments rather than large-scale systems. In other words, it’s become easier to normalize. As companies continue to tune AI to their needs, the road to streamlined profit becomes more tangible. A single program can perform tasks that require multiple human employees. Generative AI programs allow companies to envision new creative designs and trends at the push of a button. It’s unparalleled convenience at their fingertips.
What’s the Catch?
That’s the fear that drives public distrust of AI: replacement. In the Forbes study, they found that “33% of survey participants are apprehensive that AI implementation could lead to a reduction in the human workforce.” This concern has an even wider public audience, as “77% of consumers also express apprehension about human job loss due to AI advancements.” AI in the workplace is an unavoidable reality for modern companies. A technology that offers fast, logical decision-making, increased efficiency, and minimal human error is a gold mine for the gears of capitalism.
AI for the Individual
While the corporate love for AI is clear, what drives it to seep into our personal lives as well? Much like corporate motivations, the answer is convenience. ChatGPT can write emails or texts for us. Midjourney can generate easy graphic designs and images for personal ads. Gemini can research and plan an entire trip for you. No matter the platform, they provide a wide range of quality-of-life management. Having personalized assistance is the dream of most people juggling busy schedules or struggling with daily responsibilities. It’s an automated extension of yourself, capable of accessing massive amounts of information in seconds. A tool like that is the remote for one’s sense of control and efficiency amidst a chaotic world. A digital coping mechanism.
However, convenience can easily turn into obsession and dependence. As chatbots adopt more human behaviors, the potential for that proximity to form an emotional bond becomes closer to reality. Recent cases have demonstrated the possibility of companionship with AI models. The cure for loneliness is found with the tap of a keyboard. If you need a nonjudgmental ear or piece of objective advice, why not ask a copy of your favorite celebrity or fictional character? Generative AI, limited only by your imagination, can create images and art in much less time than a human artist. It offers people easy access to companionship and creativity, things that people spend their lives trying to achieve.
To put it simply, AI has evolved into a kind of comfort for some. It saves us time and spices up the mundane. There’s a universal novelty to it. Whether a person uses it professionally or recreationally, it’s hard to deny the sense of fulfillment it provides certain people.
So It’s Here To Stay. What Happens Now?
Beyond its role in replacing human labor, the processing required of platforms like ChatGPT costs millions in energy. They produce harmful levels of carbon emissions that have concerning environmental implications. Data centers require large-scale cooling systems to manage the heat that supercomputers produce, requiring massive water consumption.
Second, misinformation is also still a very real risk. AI search engines are prone to slight bias based on the data they’re trained with. Newsguard has identified “1,271 unreliable AI-generated news sites and information sources spanning 16 languages” as of May 2025.
Lastly, on a psychological level, the rapid adoption of AI into the workforce is not something everyone is ready to embrace. In an article published by the Humanities & Social Sciences Communications, they studied the effects of corporate AI adoption on employee stress and burnout. They found that “AI can increase stress in the workplace by posing new problems for workers to solve, such as the need to learn new technologies, uncertainties about responsibilities, and increased workload.” Society’s ongoing obsession with incorporating AI into everyday life is not something without consequences. It exacts tolls on the individual, society, and the planet.
Is There Any Hope?
AI has potential uses when used alongside human expertise and research. In a Pew Research Center study, they found that “5% say they would want AI to be used in their own skin cancer screening.” Research shows that certain medical models are efficient in detecting medical anomalies. In this sense, it can be vital for early detection and improving diagnoses in healthcare. While many artists view AI as lacking a human touch, it can be a great supporting tool. It can help visualize concepts, manage schedules, and automate animation processes to optimize workflow. AI can enhance human effort rather than replace it when used in moderation.
AI requires thoughtful regulation. Our love of convenience can quickly devolve into a compulsive dependence on AI. Curtis’s publicized grievance with Meta and AI wasn’t just about an ad. It represents a larger issue: AI in its most unchecked, unregulated, and chaotic form. A lack of caution and consent allowed such an ad to flourish and potentially fool the public. It took a PR nightmare for Zuckerberg and Meta to take action. If even celebrities aren’t guaranteed safety from AI malpractice, what protections exist for the common person?
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