AI and stand up comedy

“Why did the politician convey a ladder to the talk? To verify he may attain new heights together with his guarantees!”

Ask AI to jot down a political joke, and the above is an instance of what you will get.

Maybe not humorous sufficient to ship on stage in entrance of a paying viewers, however that doesn’t imply there isn’t a room for AI in comedy.

Comedians are more and more experimenting with the know-how to jot down scripts and brainstorm concepts, together with Anesti Danelis. Earlier this yr, the Canadian requested fashionable AI chatbot ChatGPT to jot down him a present.

The result’s what he has been performing all through this summer time, together with at this month’s Edinburgh Pageant Fringe.

The BBC sat down with Anesti after his sixth efficiency in seven days on the Toronto Fringe Theatre Pageant in July. He defined the writing course of behind his present “Artificially Clever”.

“I used to be taking part in round with ChatGPT, and the outcomes it gave me have been terribly hilarious, and I assumed ‘perhaps there is a present on this?’.”

Regardless of some garbage jokes, he says the software was helpful for brainstorming.

“I requested it to ‘write me 5 songs about bisexual dilemmas’, or ‘being an immigrant youngster’, and it gave me concepts that I might have by no means considered.”

What he wasn’t anticipating from AI was its understanding of the right way to devise a present.

“I informed it to make me a operating order, and it defined the place each track ought to go and why, and it made complete sense. I used to be stunned by how a lot it may clarify the reasoning behind it.”

Regardless of utilizing the know-how to jot down chunks of the script, Anesti’s present very a lot depends on his supply. All through the efficiency the comic switches from a keyboard to a guitar to ship songs and monologues. There’s plenty of interplay, together with a serenading of an viewers member, with a track written about them by ChatGPT.

Reflecting on the expertise, Anesti says: “I realized by way of the method that human creativity cannot be replicated or changed, and in the long run about 20% of the present was pure AI, and the opposite 80% was a combination.”

To this point, he says, he has solely had good suggestions from viewers members, together with Olivia Smith and Bethany Radford, who each stay in Toronto.

Olivia admits she’s sceptical of AI, however loved seeing it performed with creatively.

“I believe I would really feel a bit cheated out of an expertise if all the factor was written by know-how, nevertheless it was humorous seeing AI on stage as a result of it was artistic,” she says.

Bethany, who’s an actor, agrees, and says: “There’s a place for AI in creation and writing as long as it’s clear that it’s been a part of the method.”

A just lately launched research from the College of Southern California discovered that AI-generated jokes outperform these crafted by human beings. Bethany, nonetheless, will not be so certain, and feels “people are fairly good at sniffing out AI”.

If she is watching one thing, she provides: “I really feel like I do know when the writing had no human concerned. However I am certain that can change because it will get smarter.”

Making audiences snigger is huge enterprise, and over the previous decade the stand-up comedy market within the US has almost tripled when it comes to the mixed worth of tickets bought. That’s in accordance with information from commerce publication Pollstar, which displays the stay efficiency sector. It says US comedy ticket gross sales hit $900m (£700m) in 2023, up from $371m in 2012.

In the meantime, a separate research final month mentioned that stay comedy was now price more than £1bn a yr to the UK economic system. This determine consists of not simply ticket gross sales, but in addition the revenues of comedy venues and festivals, and the optimistic influence on the broader native economies.

US comic Viv Ford can be acting at this month’s Edinburgh Pageant Fringe.

Her present is named “No Children On The Blockchain”, and particulars her time residing with “14 tech-loving crypto [currency] bros in San Francisco”.

Although she wrote the present herself, she explains she examined her materials on ChatGPT.

“I am going to say, ‘hey, is that this joke humorous?’. And if it says ‘it’s humorous’, genuinely, it doesn’t land with an viewers,” says Viv. “But when it says a joke ‘is offensive’ it does so nicely.

“And typically ChatGPT will say ‘the joke is ok, however may use some work’, wherein case I toss it away and begin once more.”

Viv is aware of that plenty of individuals received’t be so embracing of AI within the arts. It’s a view she used to take till she lived in San Francisco, the place so many tech corporations are primarily based.

“I am so conscious that the one cause I believe this fashion is due to my four-year indoctrination within the college of San Francisco,” she says. “I realised AI may be your weapon, identical to Google may be your weapon. If you understand how to make use of AI accurately, you’re unstoppable.”

Not everybody within the comedy world is eager to attempt AI although, together with Kiwi-Filipino comic James Roque. He says it doesn’t match together with his strategy to humour.

“My perception and ethos is that the very best comedy is the sort that’s deeply human and susceptible, and AI couldn’t try this,” he says.

Mr Roque can be acting at Edinburgh this month, and he thinks audiences will discover if different comedians use AI. “They’ll sniff out when one thing isn’t genuine,” he says.

“So in the event you haven’t created it, I believe audiences are sensible and emotionally clever sufficient to know one thing is off within the present.”

May AI be the way forward for comedy? Nobody may be certain.

Regardless of writing nearly all of his present present with AI, Anesti Danelis isn’t satisfied he would do it once more. He additionally has issues for the following era of comedians who may develop to depend on it.

“I believe the damaging factor about AI is that it may be a crutch,” he explains.

“When you’re a longtime comic who is aware of your voice, AI provides good recommendation. However if you’re a brand new comic and you do not have that voice but, it’s good to be taught with out AI.

“In any other case, a era of comedians can be saying the identical repetitive, distilled stuff.”