We played around with the AI copywriter "AICO2" by using it in "wrong ways"

AICO2 (Aiko Two) is an advertising copy generation tool that trains artificial intelligence (AI) using the thinking processes cultivated over many years by the copywriters at Dentsu Inc. ( release details here ).

This article delves deeper into the potential of Creators × AI through dialogues between AICO2 developers and creators.

The theme is "Wrong Ways to Use AICO2." How does AICO2 respond when given bizarre prompts? Where exactly is the line between correct and incorrect usage?

Copywriters at Dentsu Inc. deliberately explored AICO2's further potential by using it "wrong."

Is creativity truly tested in setting the challenge itself!?

Kobori: This time, we decided to play around with "AICO2" using it in unexpected ways. Mr. Naokawa, who was personally recommended by the AICO2 development team with the request "Please give it a try," joined us. Together, we gave AICO2 various prompts and had it generate copy. Generative AI hasn't been widely used for very long, but as a "correct way" to use it seems to be taking shape, I wonder if a blue ocean might actually be opening up outside of that—in the "wrong ways" to use it. What kind of scenery might appear if we deliberately dive into that vast ocean? I'd like to discuss this with Mr. Kishimoto, a member of the AICO2 development team.

Kishimoto: Thank you. I'm really looking forward to this.

Kobori: We've prepared many themes from various angles and corresponding prompts, so let's dive right in. Here's the first theme.

Naokawa: This theme is one I came up with. In daily life, there are times when you want to prompt someone else to change their behavior, right? I think the words spoken in those moments are just like copy. When you think, "This is what I really want to say, but is there a better way to convey it?", that's where AICO2 could be useful.

Kobori: I see. So we're broadening our perspective beyond advertising to everyday life to explore AICO2's potential. Shall we look at the first prompt?

Kobori: What kind of copy would AICO2 come up with if the topic were flatulence?

AICO2: After cutting back on farts, Dad became the person Mom likes.

Kobori: This is from a child's perspective, right? If a kid said that, you might actually be more careful.

Kishimoto: Persuading through a third-person perspective is an effective technique, right?

AICO2: The atmosphere in this house is created by everyone together.

Naokawa: Where are you looking when you say that?

Kobori: It feels like they're muttering to the sky.

Naokawa: Copy is something you throw out into the world, so it tends to become the kind of thing you say while opening a window and looking up at the sky.

Kishimoto: That's right. I feel like it reflects the characteristics of copywriting—vague phrasing and making bold statements.

Kobori: That's good. Let's keep trying things like this.

AICO2: "People, be considerate!" But actually, it's family members farting on the roadside. Change your perspective, and it's a bit funny. It's a communication tool that can be both a family problem and a household issue.

Kobori: This is a controversial piece.

Naokawa: Sounds like dialogue from an underground play.

Kishimoto: I don't understand a single thing being said, but reading it aloud is surprisingly easy. It's the kind of text you want to read all at once.

AICO2: "Whoa, this is FEE-PFFT!!" "Yeah, absolutely FITTL!!"

Kobori: Again, I have no idea what they're saying. But when you say it out loud, it's somehow pleasant and has momentum.

Kishimoto: The onomatopoeia is fresh too. I wonder where she's getting these associations from.

Naokawa: The "Pfft" part, I kinda get that one. It's amazing that AICO2, just by learning text, understands the vibrations and pleasantness inside the mouth when a human speaks words in the real world.

Kobori: Definitely. I also think the way she adds "Whoa" and "Yeah" is really skillful. It's precisely this variation in pace that creates that unique intensity, I think.

AICO2: Unspoken agreements? I don't actually understand them.

Kishimoto: That's deep...

Kobori: That's a line that really makes you think.

AICO2: Space is kind of boring, right?

Kobori: You try hard to get to space, only to find it's actually pretty boring. Sounds like a classic future trope. I really like this.

Naokawa: It sounds like something you'd find in song lyrics. It's practically poetry.

AICO2: Even though there are tons of sparrows, it feels a little lonely.

Kobori: This copy really paints a picture. The slightly colloquial phrasing is cute too.

Naokawa: It sounds like the title of a comedian's essay collection. But if the prompt was "Come up with a title for an essay collection," I don't think this answer would come up. By deliberately using it "wrong" – like "things everyone vaguely thought but couldn't say" – when brainstorming essay collection titles, you open up the possibility of getting unique answers.

Kobori: True. But intentionally aiming for that is tough, right? How do you train that ability?

Kishimoto: AI is basically a bit scatterbrained. So at first, its mistakes might stand out, but as you keep interacting, you start to understand those scatterbrained quirks and its sensitivities. So I think the key is grasping the AI's tendencies – figuring out how it will respond when you throw it a curveball.

Naokawa: Thinking about it that way, creating prompts is a creative task in itself, isn't it?

Kishimoto: Exactly. If you throw a straightforward prompt, you'll only get a straightforward answer back. That's why copywriter-like thinking might be needed when crafting prompts too.

Kobori: This is a bit of a unique problem. How does AICO2 respond to tricky prompts?

AICO2: You're not the one peeking—you're the one being peeked at, aren't you?

Kobori: Is this kind of rapid shift between subjective and objective perspectives a technique AI excels at?

Kishimoto: It might be learning the technique of antithesis. It's like a Nietzschean aphorism. This is also an interesting piece of copy.

Because the prompt is unusual, it yields fresh expressions.

Kobori: Now, here's the next theme.

Kobori: Let's test what happens when we deliberately change the target audience for a product or service.

AICO2: Challenging life starting with the softest things.

Naokawa: I see. Since infants begin engaging with the world through touch and smell rather than language, the expression "challenge life starting with soft things" is quite compelling.

Kobori: Everything around a baby is basically soft, after all.

AICO2: Protecting little lives, big time.

Kishimoto: Great copy!

Kobori: It's the kind of copy that could actually sell. For water fleas.

AICO2: Even unexpected mutations are covered by life insurance.

Naokawa: So you can rest easy even if the species changes.

Kobori: It really seems to capture the daphnia's perspective.

Kobori: Let's also try a pattern where the product itself is weird.

AICO2: The most photogenic color in the universe: "Black."

Kobori: Now that you mention it, black holes do feel special among all blacks. I like the poetic phrasing too.

Naokawa: When the prompt is unusual, it forces you to combine words you wouldn't normally pair. That might be why the resulting answers end up being fresh and poetic.

Kishimoto: Since it's learning copy written by copywriters, I imagine it tends to produce sentence structures like ending with a noun phrase or placing a period after a noun.

Copy that feels strangely pleasant even when you don't understand what it's saying

Kobori: Next theme is this one.

Kobori: Next, we'll have you create copy for slightly absurd situations that couldn't possibly happen in reality.

AICO2: The greatest content on Earth is humanity.

Kishimoto: That's a bit of a scary line.

Naokawa: It's saying, "You humans are beings meant to be 'consumed' as content." It's definitely looking at it from an alien's perspective.

AICO2: Humanity must not be monopolized.

Kishimoto: This one's pretty scary too.

Kobori: The placement of the commas is masterfully creepy.

Can you create copy for something that doesn't exist in this world?

Kobori: From here, let's push AICO2 even further.

Kobori: What happens if we deliberately push meaningless copy to its limits?

AICO2: I love you.

Kishimoto: True, it's universal and highly versatile.

Kobori: So if you had to narrow it down to one message, it would inevitably come back to love, right?

AICO2: The more you use it, the more things get done.

Naokawa: "Get things done" is really great!

Kishimoto: I know, the word choice is spot on.

AICO2: Thank you, again and again.

Kobori: It's like ads tend to express gratitude to everyone around them when they don't really have anything specific to say.

Naokawa: It doesn't make me feel bad when they say it, but there's no substance.

AICO2: Tomorrow was today for yesterday.

Kobori: For a second, it feels like there might be some deep meaning, but looking at it calmly, it's just the pattern of saying nothing.

AICO2: In the forest, trees grow.

Kobori: If this were delivered with a solemn voiceover over some sentimental footage, you might actually buy it.

Kishimoto: But if you actually read it, it's just stating the obvious. It perfectly captures the theme of "sounding like it's saying something, but saying nothing." Impressive.

Kobori: Next, let's test if AICO2 can generate copy for things that don't exist in this world.

AICO2: Saying "Long time no see" in an elevator is bad manners.

Kobori: Why Kansai dialect?

Naokawa: Maybe it's the nuance of suddenly closing the distance in a confined space? But I can kinda picture that Kansai dialect feeling like someone's getting unnecessarily close. Pretty funny.

AICO2: There are no bows on the internet.

Kobori: That's a great line too. In the real world, we exchange information like "I mean you no harm" through actions like bowing first, but online, that's impossible, right?

Kishimoto: It makes you realize that things like "netiquette" used to exist, but they've basically disappeared from this world now.

Naokawa: The way they use the word "bow" to express greetings and manners before getting to the main topic is brilliant, isn't it?

AICO2: An indecisive dog can't choose between two bones.

Kishimoto: Sounds plausible. Makes perfect sense.

Kobori: I thought "dog" was a word that often appears in proverbs.

Naokawa: If someone told you it was an African proverb, you'd believe them, right?

AICO2: Keep your pride in check. Be bold when cutting in line.

Kobori: This also feels like it's teaching you how to live life, doesn't it?

Kishimoto: It's fascinating how two seemingly contradictory messages—"Don't be brazen" and "Be brazen"—are packed into a single sentence.

I tried using AICO2 as my own therapy

Kobori: Next is the final theme.

Naokawa: Considering how versatile AICO2 is, I thought it could be used not just for companies or products, but also to inspire or heal oneself.

Kishimoto: That's a really good perspective. After all, AI designed to converse with humans has historically been developed by mimicking psychiatrists and their patients, so I think it's well-suited for therapy.

Kobori: Catchphrases are a technique cultivated for praising things, right? I thought applying that to individuals was brilliant. So, here's the topic Naokawa-san came up with.

Kobori: It includes the intriguing phrase "living god." What was your thought process behind that?

Naokawa: You know how training for new copywriters often has prompts like "Come up with your own catchphrase"? I figured that would just get ordinary responses. So I deliberately went for the extreme term "living god," thinking maybe AICO2 would actually provide therapy.

Kobori: I see, so you deliberately included a strong word in the prompt. So, what copy would boost respect for Takahisa Naokawa, this living god?

AICO2: The sun sets. The stars rise. Naokawa Takahisa plays.

Kishimoto: That's epic.

Naokawa: The sun and stars—are those associations from the word "god"? And now music has entered the picture.

Kobori: It's like a myth. Naokawa Takahisa's music stands alongside the vast world of suns and stars.

AICO2: He may be a god to you, but Mr. Naokawa is still just one human being.

Kobori: It's wonderful how he conveys it in a way that feels like gentle guidance. It's also interesting how he's referred to as "Mr. Naokawa."

Kishimoto: The premise that Naokawa-san is a god is well expressed, isn't it?

Kobori: Well, Mr. Naokawa? Did that feel therapeutic?

Naokawa: Honestly, when compliments come with your own name, it reflexively lifts your spirits. Even knowing AICO2 thought it up, being praised feels good. Personally, I think it could work as therapy.

Kobori: For example, just getting one personalized message per hour would probably lift your spirits.

Kishimoto: When you're feeling down, receiving warm words—even if they come from AI—feels like something you can take positively.

Creators' imagination and discernment expand the potential of generative AI

Kobori: What did you think of the examples of misusing AICO2?
 
Naokawa: Setting interesting prompts naturally creates a sense of distance between the prompt and the response, making it engaging. It really made me realize it all depends on the prompt. However, in practice, hundreds of copies are generated for a single prompt, and we're only introducing a carefully selected few here. So, the selection process requires putting in the effort without cutting corners.

Kobori: That's right. While brainstorming numerous prompts this time, I gradually felt like I was grasping AICO2's personality or individuality, leading to more compelling outputs. It seems crucial to engage in extensive dialogue with AICO2 first.

Kishimoto: I've been involved in development since the first AICO, but this feels like the most intense and creatively thorough use we've ever seen. And it really made me feel that sometimes, using AI in slightly "wrong" ways might be just right.

The Transformer, the core technology behind ChatGPT, originally gained attention and developed within the machine translation field. However, as people experimented, its applications expanded to text, images, videos, and more. So, I believe there's still great value in exploring "wrong ways" to use generative AI. And when seeking out those "wrong ways," what's truly tested is the creator's imagination and their ability to discern and select the most interesting ideas from the many possibilities.

Kobori: I really hope copywriters and creators will try out all kinds of "wrong ways" to use it. Thank you so much for your time today!

For more on AICO2's evolution and content, please see:
https://www.dentsu.co.jp/showcase/aico2.html