Even James Cameron can't escape AI

The creator of Terminator joins a Californian company considering the development of artificial intelligence.

A crime of lèse-majesté? James Cameron joins the board of directors of Stability AI, the generative AI company known for its text-to-image generator Stable Diffusion and its text-to-audio conversion web application, Stable Audio. He, the director with the overflowing imagination, who had so warned the public with his saga Terminatorand who also participated in creating new technologies – notably cameras for Avatar-capitulates and switches to artificial intelligence?

So, he said in a statement that he believes the intersection between generative AI and CGI will be the “next wave” of storytelling in Hollywood. For Stability AI it is a godsend that an artist of his pedigree brings his point of view. For the world of cinema, this is proof that a paradigm shift is at work.

“I have spent my career researching emerging technologies that push the boundaries of what is possible, all in the service of telling incredible stories, said Cameron, relayed by IndieWire. I was at the forefront of CGI more than three decades ago, and have remained at the forefront ever since. Today, the intersection of generative AI and CGI image creation is the next wave. The convergence of these two completely different creative engines will open new avenues for artists to tell stories in ways we could never have imagined.”

The director of Titanic joins Sean Parker, played by Justin Timberlake in The Social Network. “Stability AI is poised to lead this transformation. I'm excited to collaborate with Sean, Prem and the Stability AI team as they shape the future of all visual media,” Cameron said laudatorily.

Not to be outdone, Parker also praised Cameron's influence on technology:

“James Cameron is a legend, both for his artistic vision as a filmmaker and for his role as a pioneering technologist. Having an artist of his caliber at the negotiating table marks the start of a new chapter for Stability AI. We “We are incredibly excited about the limitless potential for creative collaboration between generative media platforms and the artistic community.”

Cameron was then asked about the advent of generative AI in storytelling in 2023. The writer/director said he was not interested in using AI to help him write his screenplays and that it was unlikely that she “moves an audience”. But he acknowledged that if an AI-generated script managed to win an Oscar in 20 years, Hollywood would probably have to “take it seriously”.

Only a year ago, however, James Cameron held to warn the industry about the current development of artificial intelligence, which affects several areas of expertise: “I warned you in 1984, and you didn’t listen to me,” he declared, referring to his first film Terminator.

“I think using AI as a weapon is the greatest danger. I think we're going to enter the equivalent of a nuclear arms race with AI, and if we don't build it, the others will certainly build it, and therefore the situation will get worse.”

James Cameron protests against artificial intelligence