As the discourse around artificial intelligence (AI) in Hollywood continues to buzz, Steven Spielberg recently shared his two cents.
The 3x Oscar winner noted that he’s “withholding judgment on AI” until he has a better understanding of how it’s being used, but he’s “not willing to substitute” an AI tool for a creative role usually filled by humans.
“Where I don’t love AI is where it takes a position, or there’s an empty chair at a writer’s table,” he explained on the IMO podcast. “There’s six writers, and there’s an empty chair, and there’s a computer in front of the empty chair, and it is the seventh writer. I’m not willing to substitute, because I don’t really believe in sentience. I don’t believe there is any substitute for the soul. I don’t think that is an algorithm that is inventible.”
While he sees AI as a useful tool for the medical field or in education, Spielberg doesn’t think it should be used as more than a tool in creative fields. “I don’t want AI involved in that way. If AI wants to help me find locations, that’s great. Saves us all a lot of leg work,” he said.
“But don’t tell me that I don’t have the right antagonist in this movie, don’t tell me how to write my dialogue for this character, don’t tell me where the camera has to go,” added Spielberg. “And also, don’t tell me what the sets should look like, unless AI is simply a tool in the large tool chest of the production designer.”
Spielberg said, “Use AI as a tool, but do not use AI as the final word on anything creative. That’s where I draw the line.”
The use of AI in Hollywood continues to be a hot-button topic. Meanwhile, SAG-AFTRA has endorsed the Trump administration’s AI policy framework, which calls for Congress to enact legislation that includes parental controls, intellectual property rights protection, First Amendment protections, expanding AI workforce development, allowing data centers to generate their own power, and removing legal barriers that limit AI innovation.
