Why keeping it real will have greater value in future

As many charities are now wondering whether they should embrace AI, we take a look at how - and why - people will put a higher value on ‘real’ content in the not-too-distant future.

Can AI ever replace real lived experience?

I recently wrote a piece for BBC Good Food about the rise of cultivated or lab-grown meat – real meat grown in large vats from a few animal starter cells. The Food Standards Agency says lab-grown meat could be on our shelves by 2027; an announcement that has, understandably, worried British farmers.

But rather than calling for it to be banned, research by the Royal Agricultural University found farmers are exploring new ways to work with cultivated meat manufacturers – those starter cells have to come from somewhere, after all.

The bit I found really interesting is that farmers could start charging a premium for ‘real meat’. Promoting traditional, farm-produced meat as special or better quality than ‘fake meat’ – which, let’s be honest, will probably end up in mass-produced junk foods – means the public will soon see the value of genuine produce over cultivated meat.

In that same week, Google released Flow, new AI video-editing tool that industry insiders say will revolutionise film making. It can deliver realistic audio and video but also raises questions about how much influence writers, directors, actors and other creatives will have in future.

But, like our farmers, this could be turned to their advantage. Speaking on The Rest is Entertainment podcast, TV producer and author Richard Osman, said, “This means anything that’s not made by AI immediately has a premium.

“If you go, this is actually made by humans, suddenly that means something. We have to be able to harness this premium on human-made stuff.”

About 12 years ago, Boots Health & Beauty magazine introduced a no-Photoshop policy for their cover models. The idea was to feature natural women who hadn’t been digitally enhanced in any way. We could soon see similar disclaimers for AI; a stamp or watermark for films, books or music to prove it was made by humans.

So real = better, whether that’s for steak or script writing. And this is something charities can lean into.

Lark’s campaign for Wellbeing of Women, built around real women’s experiences. Click image to see more.

As AI is increasingly integrated into our lives, it will become even more important for cause-led organisations to build campaigns, communications – even entire brands – around truth and authenticity.

That means relying on people’s lived experiences, but not just for case studies. Involving the real voices and expert knowledge of your community can help shape the way you position your organisation.

It starts with in-depth research, including interviews and consultations, to uncover all that first-person experience. And it ends with creating unique and engaging content that AI would struggle to emulate.

We believe this will become a key selling point (or donating point?) for successful brands; to step away from overly slick, manufactured content and to deliberately highlight all the things that make us perfectly imperfect humans.

There’s definitely a place for AI, and all the incredibly complex tasks it can do. But it’s what we do with it that counts.

As consumers get better at spotting what’s authentic and what’s not, honesty and integrity will become even more valued. In turn, this will raise the status of human-made work, whether that’s using in-house teams or creative agencies like Lark.

Because creating compelling, surprising and behaviour-changing content is something that real meat, sorry, real people will always do best.

Find out how to write a great charity case study here or contact us if you’d like to work together on your next project.