Meme wars: AI vs human wit

AI can crank out memes by the dozen, but humans still drop the funniest, most relatable punchlines. A new KTH study proves that while AI nails quantity, true humor needs a human touch.

AI has been busting out some weird memes over the last few years. You’d like to think that humans understand the human condition a bit better than machines do.

Yet, is AI getting any better at this? It is, according to a new study.

Researchers from KTH Royal Institute of Technology, LMU Munich, and TU Darmstadt collaborated to determine whether memes were funnier when created purely by humans, in tandem with AI, or solely by machines.

Participants created memes using classic templates like Doge, Futurama Fry, and Boromir’s iconic “One does not simply…” line.

They were then rated based on the criteria of humor, creativity, and shareability.

The researchers found that, on average, the AI memes scored higher than the human and human-AI teams.

“AI is great at generating lots of ideas quickly,” says co-author Zhikun Wu.

“But quantity doesn’t always mean quality.”

However, when it came to the cream of the crop, the truly funniest ones, the human-made memes came out on top.

Hybrid memes prevailed for creativity and shareability, as they allowed designers the license to refine what AI had already produced.

The problems with co-creation

The study found that when participants were making memes, they perceived AI as a one-time generator rather than a creative partner.

Most users didn’t ask for revisions or follow-up suggestions, limiting the AI's usefulness when it came to refining ideas.

This is quite typical of the frustration people feel with AI when it gets things wrong – the back and forth of true creativity is missed out on, when we show scorn and "go back to the drawing board” ourselves.

“This limited use may have held back the potential of true co-creativity,” said Wu, lamenting a missed opportunity on true human and machine synergy.

AI lacks nuance and emotional layering. If the aim is to churn out content, then perhaps AI is the best port of call, but cultural context and the element of surprise are what give humans the icing on the cake.

The authors recommended that future tools should be focused on dialog-based and iterative creativity.