A recent report suggests this might be the case.
In 2022, demand for digital art exploded, as the NFT boom took off. However, the bull market was short-lived, and by 2023 the wind has gone out of the sails, with 95% of NFTs estimated to be more or less worthless according to a study by dappGambl released a year ago.
However, there is no doubt that the technology upon which NFTs were built (blockchain -based tokens) was revolutionary, creating a market for digital scarcity and ownership of digital assets and collectibles, including art. So can the boom in AI in recent years combined with blockchain technology and NFTs pave the way for renewed interest in digital art? According to research by ArtTactic, 11% of collectors surveyed in 2024 said they collected digital art, but only 2% of collectors said that the digital art was AI-generated. However, this could be about to change.
Based on a new report launched two weeks ago by Hiscox in partnership with ArtTactic, titled Art and AI Market 2024, there are signs that a new generation of art collectors and art enthusiasts might be open to the potential of AI generated art.
Here are 5 Key takeaways from the report
A new generation of collectors could lead the way
The interest in buying AI-generated art was higher among new collectors (collecting less than 3 years), where 7% said they had bought and a further 39% said they would consider buying AI generated art.
New buyers believe in AI art’s cultural and economic value
More than a quarter (26%) of new art collectors said they believe AI-generated art has the potential of being as valuable (in economic terms) and important (in cultural terms) as traditional art mediums, although 44% said it was inferior to human creativity.
Trust and transparency
There is a strong desire among new art collectors (82%) to clearly distinguish AI-generated from human-created content. Clear labelling and transparency is likely to play an important role in establishing the integrity of a future market for AI-generated art.
Fair compensation for artists could drive more collector demand
44% of new art collectors said they would be more interested in buying AI-generated art if they knew that artists would benefit from their purchase, and that artists whose artworks have been used for training of AI models would be fairly compensated for their intellectual property.
Hype and speculation
Almost half (45%) of seasoned art collectors said they were concerned about a possible ‘hype’ and speculative investment in AI-generated art, drawing parallels to what happened during the NFT boom in 2021/22, however only 21% of new collectors said the same.
Are you a student or recent graduate eager to contribute your voice to ArtTactic’s Editorial vision? We’d love to hear from you!
Reach out to our Head of Editorial, Margaret Hong (margaret@arttactic.com) for more information.