Should we trust AI as a creative collaborator with Professor Anjana Susarla

Should we trust AI as a creative collaborator with Professor Anjana Susarla

From Tech Tomorrow by Zühlke

September 16, 2025 · 27 min · Episode 16

About this episode

The episode explores the implications of AI as a creative collaborator and its impact on originality and the creative process.

By 2026, Europol estimates that more than 90% of online content could be AI-generated – from music and written work to imagery and beyond. But what does this shift mean for creativity, originality, and the role of human value in the process? In this episode of Tech Tomorrow , David Elliman speaks with Anjana Susarla, Professor of Responsible AI at the Eli Broad College of Business, Michigan State University. Together, they explore whether AI can truly be trusted as a creative collaborator in both work and wider society. Their conversation looks at how the traditional process of drafting and redrafting may change when AI enters the picture, and the rise of so-called ‘AI slop’ – mass-produced, low-quality outputs – in areas such as writing, design, and programming. They also consider whether agentic AI might one day predict our preferences more accurately than we can ourselves, and reflect on the persistent hype and ‘magic’ surrounding new AI tools, asking what this means for the future of creativity, business, and work. Episode Highlights: 00:47 – What happens to the iterative creative process when AI is introduced? 02:59 – The polarising reactions to AI tools. 04:03 – Do we even…

People in this episode

Host: David Elliman

Guest: Anjana Susarla

Topics covered

  • AI creativity
  • collaboration
  • originality
  • human value
  • AI tools
  • creative process

Keywords

  • AI-generated content
  • creativity
  • collaboration
  • feedback loops
  • AI prediction
  • mass-produced outputs

Mentioned in this episode

Organizations: Eli Broad College of Business, Michigan State University, Europol

More episodes of Tech Tomorrow

Explore listener stats, chart rankings, contacts and more on the Tech Tomorrow podcast page.