Miss Universe Committee Responds to AI Art Concerns

The spotlight remains firmly on the designs, but not just for their bold colors or toucan-inspired flair. The real debate is whether artificial intelligence has a place in creating a costume meant to represent Belize on the world stage. As the public casts their votes to decide which design will come to life, questions are swirling: What are the rules for submissions? And is AI a fair reflection of Belizean artistry? To get some answers, we spoke with Miss Universe Belize Director, Destinee Arnold. She says the committee is open to criticism but sees AI as just another tool in the creative process. Here’s more on that conversation.

 

On the Phone: Destinee Arnold, Director, Miss Universe Belize

“Artificial intelligence is a tool that multiple people from multiple industries can utilize for whatever purpose they deem fit. In this case, there were some designers or creatives that utilize this tool to bring their vision to life. We did not anticipate an uproar from the public in response to someone utilizing that tool. Nor were we looking out to distinguish drawn designs versus artificial intelligence. We do recognize that we are in a modern age of technology. There are different ways in which you can present whatever your vision is, and we appreciate people being resourceful and we also appreciate those who take their pen to paper and draw out the designs. The focus is making sure that we include the public in national costume design because this is a costume that represents our culture, and we want to make sure that we are maintaining the focus on that goal. We don’t want to feed into any type of negativity. We want to continue to celebrate the fact that Bella is making waves right now in the pageant industry. She’s receiving a lot of positive international attention and we want to make sure that we maintain that celebration. And just recognizing that I. We can’t run away from artificial intelligence. We can’t run away from the evolution of technology. We can embrace it and just make sure that we are properly utilizing tools that are now at our disposal.”

 

Arnold also assures that the team will work with a Belizean designer to ensure that the costume is accurate to Belizean culture and can be worn comfortably on stage.