AI-generated SCDF posters creep out netizens, Latest Singapore News - The New Paper
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AI-generated SCDF posters creep out netizens

It seems that artists are not the only ones unhappy with AI.

Redditors have shared that they did not like looking at Singapore Civil Defence Force's creepy, AI-generated figures in their campaign posters.

Unlike Singapore Police Force, which used Assistant Superintendant Ryan Koh as their poster boy and even put up standees of him in their crime prevention campaign, SCDF opted for a more hi-tech approach.

The AI-generated figures in SCDF's recruitment campaign look plastic-y and have awkward poses, just like characters from the popular simulation game The Sims.

Redditor Yejus on Dec 4 shared photos of the SCDF recruitment posters and said they gave off an uncanny valley vibe.

Uncanny valley describes the unease or even revulsion felt by humans in response to realistic-looking humanoid robots.

While Yejus wondered if it would have been better if real humans or illustrations were used instead, fellow Redditors speculated that there could have been budget constraints and SCDF was perhaps trying to prevent unwanted attention to human models. 

There were also Redditors who commented that the AI-generated figures looked outdated, as if they were created with early-2000s technology.

At least one Redditor pointed out that at least these figures do not have extra limbs or fingers.

The AI-generated figures look like characters from the game The Sims.PHOTO: MYSCDF/INSTAGRAM
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