Car pictures created by artificial intelligence are the ultimate rabbit hole

AI art is cool, but is also the target of controversy with artists around the world. SCREENSHOT FROM MIDJOURNEY

It seems our days in this business are numbered, and it’s all the fault of artificial intelligence. Not only can clever bots now write articles, but the machines have also learned to create the visuals to go with them. AI project Midjourney is currently making waves and filling social-media timelines with all sorts of weird and wonderful imagery.

Naturally, we couldn’t resist and asked it to create some car-based art for us. Prepare to dive down the ultimate Internet rabbit hole as we took the claimed future of automotive (and all other) imaging for a spin. All images shown below were created by feeding the Midjourney AI bot simple text prompts, and it usually came up with the results in mere seconds.

We started easy by asking it to create some old-school, Manila-based street racing action. The result didn’t disappoint.

These look straight out of a street-racing comic book. IMAGES FROM MIDJOURNEY

Next, meet the AI’s interpretation of the love child between a Ferrari F40 and a Lamborghini Diablo.

Hey, it might be possible to make one of these in real life if you ring up the folks at Liberty Walk. IMAGES FROM MIDJOURNEY

Next, we asked it to create a Philippine-made hypercar. The result looks quite tidy.

Somehow, it looks just like the Aurelio supercar. IMAGES FROM MIDJOURNEY

As there was talk about a Formula 1 race in Metro Manila in the past, we asked it to create an F1 circuit for the country’s capital.

While not exactly what a Manila-based F1 race would look like, another FIA-grade circuit would be great. IMAGES FROM MIDJOURNEY

Naturally, the next question was to ask what an F1 night race in Manila might look like.

Step aside, Singapore. IMAGES FROM MIDJOURNEY

When we asked it to imagine what a futuristic jeepney might look like, it didn’t fare quite so well.

These all look like things that could be built today. IMAGES FROM MIDJOURNEY

Flying buses carrying commuters along EDSA, on the other hand, look pretty rad.

Would you ride on a flying bus in Metro Manila? IMAGE FROM MIDJOURNEY

When we asked it to create images of Manila without cars but with cyclists and pedestrians, it didn’t quite work out but the results are still somehow pretty.

This is how Metro Manila would look like if our politicians actually cared. IMAGES FROM MIDJOURNEY

How about an AI interpretation of the Tour de Cebu?

Some of these are actually poster-worthy. IMAGES FROM MIDJOURNEY

Not only are our new machine overlords good at creating images, but they can even create images of the thing they are seemingly intent on replacing—human designers. It’s like adding insult to injury.

It's scary how the AI got the facial features just right. IMAGES FROM MIDJOURNEY

All that made us a little bit sad, so we asked it to create images of sad automotive writers driving convertibles in the rain.

We're not sure who would do this, but it nailed the emotion part. IMAGES FROM MIDJOURNEY

In the end, all that will be left for us to do is to walk through the digital wasteland, and find a new job beyond the horizon.

Have you been watching 'The Last of Us' recently? IMAGES FROM MIDJOURNEY

That is, if there is a world left once the machines have taken over.

Or would you rather have your world more like 'Fallout' or 'Mad Max'? IMAGES FROM MIDJOURNEY