Cllr Hickey-O’Mara calls for new AI policy in response to tourism video.
THE LIMERICK County Council’s use of Artificial Intelligence in an online tourism video has raised the question of whether Limerick businesses and organisations are becoming over-reliant on using AI.
The video was posted a month ago on the official Limerick Festivals and Events social media, promoting Christmas in Limerick through the use of AI. The caption said, “Take a first look at what Christmas in Limerick could be like this year.”
The Council paid German company Render Vision €4,000 to produce the AI video. Comments were turned off, but the public and current sitting councillors still voiced their opinions on the decision to use AI.
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Councillor Shane Hickey O’Mara has been one of the most outspoken on the subject and told the Limerick Voice, “Our priority after the recent debacle is to call for an AI policy to be put in place in the Council that outlines if and when AI content can be used.”
Cllr Hickey-O’Mara told the Irish Examiner, “It was so disappointing to see this video being put out by the council, let alone their turning off the comments on the video when they didn’t like the criticism.”
“It was produced by a German company and cost €4,000… This is at a time when we are consistently told that the council can’t afford arts and culture initiatives that would aim to support and promote Limerick-based artists.”
Whether you walk through Limerick city or scroll through social media, AI posters are being used by a lot of businesses instead of hiring a specialist graphic designer or filmmaker.
The public is becoming increasingly frustrated with AI content, especially when a big entity uses it. UL student Brian Kelly told the Limerick Voice, “I don’t buy it personally; I think a lot of creative media students lose opportunities because of it. I don’t feel AI content holds the same viewer retention as if a human created it.” The ongoing development of AI is limiting jobs for people in the media industry.
Another UL student said, “I’m mostly against it, but I can understand a small football club or business using it because they don’t have the money, but it would be better if they chose to use Canva.”
The Limerick Voice has reached out to the Limerick County Council to get a reaction to the backlash they faced from this video and whether they will continue to consider using AI in future projects. They are currently preparing a statement.