AI as My Cartoonist: Ideas Over Execution

There's something about original, creative, authentic hand-drawn work that AI cannot and can never fully replicate.

By Satya Sagar

I use AI software to generate my cartoons. The ideas are entirely mine, but the drawing skills belong to artificial intelligence. I don't feel guilty about this arrangement, because, like any form of communication, the point of cartoons is to get the message across.

Purity of execution doesn't matter as much as the clarity of vision.

That said, I agree that if I possessed the drawing skills myself, I would find greater satisfaction in the final product. There's something about original, creative, authentic hand-drawn work that AI cannot fully replicate.

Yet, using AI is profoundly liberating. It allows me to do something I've always wanted—create visual satire—despite lacking artistic ability. 

 My barrier was never imagination; it was technical skill. This shift suggests something broader: technical proficiency in cartooning, coding, or other crafts is becoming less essential. Those with ideas can now move forward using AI as fancy crutches, democratizing creative expression, while raising questions about craft, authenticity, and what we truly value in art.

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Satya Sagar is a journalist, cartoonist and filmmaker working in the area of public health.