As Kyle Chayka wrote in The New Yorker, “AI is homogenizing our thoughts.” And our brands, too.
The more we outsource taste, tone, and creativity to machines, the more we risk flattening the human fingerprints that make a brand feel worthy of attention — or affection.
In a sea of sameness, what we crave isn’t perfection. It’s proof of personhood.
Luxury has always been a moving target.
Once, it was about price. Then it was about scarcity. Then came the age of convenience: on-demand, delivered fast, frictionless. Now? Luxury is about feeling.
In the aftermath of algorithmic overload and AI auto-fill, the thing we want most is the thing tech can’t replicate: the unmistakable trace of a human hand.
We’ve been optimised to the point of emptiness. What we crave now is imperfection with intention.
As more of our visual world gets AI-generated, the new luxury isn’t speed or scale — it’s slowness, touch, and point-of-view. It’s the sense that someone is behind this.
We’ve mistaken efficiency for elegance. But perfection is no longer the goal.
In fact, it might be the problem.
The world doesn’t need more perfectly templated AI-first brands. It needs more felt ones. The kind you can’t stop thinking about. The kind that speak with a voice so specific, you’d recognise them in a dark room. The kind that feel like a long-lost friend showing up with wine and wisdom.
Continue reading on our Substack, Public Opinion.
