Meanwhile : Creativity in an age of similar answers

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Meanwhile : Creativity in an age of similar answers

Published: 07 Apr. 2026, 00:05

Audio report: written by reporters, read by AI

Han Seon-hwa

The author is an honorary professor at UST and former president of the Korea Institute of Science and Technology Information.

Recent research has produced an intriguing finding. When more than 70 artificial intelligence models were given the same open-ended question, many generated strikingly similar answers. Despite differences in companies and architectures, the ideas, structures and metaphors in their responses were largely alike. The result raises a critical question: in a world where difference fades, where does creativity come from.

A mobile phone display shows the icons of AI apps Deepseek, Chatgpt, Copilot, Perplexity and Gemini in Berlin, Germany, on Oct. 31, 2025. [EPA/YONHAP]

Artificial intelligence works by learning vast amounts of data and identifying the most plausible answer. In other words, the averages and probabilities of the past shape the responses of the present. As a result, AI outputs tend to be rational and balanced, yet they rarely depart far from what is expected. This is both a strength and a limitation. Many of history’s major discoveries began with thoughts that deviated from the norm, often sparked by the question of why everyone thinks the same way.

There is a Korean proverb that says a protruding stone gets hammered down. It implies that those who stand out are trimmed until they become smooth. Yet the present era may be demanding the opposite. When answers converge toward sameness, ideas that break away from established frames and questions that seem slightly offbeat can open new possibilities. Like Sha Wujing in the story of Sun Wukong, a figure who often gives unexpected replies can disrupt the flow and create new paths.

As AI becomes more sophisticated, it will deliver optimal answers with increasing speed. But an optimal answer is not always the best one. This is especially true in science and innovation. The ability to reframe familiar questions and to doubt what seems obvious remains a distinctly human domain. Perhaps we now live in a time when it is better to preserve the protruding stone rather than to smooth it away. In an age overflowing with correct answers, questions become more valuable. And those questions often begin with thoughts that are just a little unconventional.

Such unconventional thinking does not always appear efficient or immediately useful, but it introduces variation into a system that would otherwise converge on sameness. In environments driven by optimization, even a small deviation can redirect the trajectory of inquiry. The history of science and culture shows that progress often emerges from misfits, errors and unexpected detours.

This article was originally written in Korean and translated by a bilingual reporter with the help of generative AI tools. It was then edited by a native English-speaking editor. All AI-assisted translations are reviewed and refined by our newsroom.