The New Yorker's AI-generated illustration of Sam Altman sparks debate about whether AI art belongs in AI coverage

The New Yorker published a profile of OpenAI CEO Sam Altman featuring an unsettling AI-generated illustration with disembodied faces surrounding his head

Artist David Szauder created the image using generative AI tools and disclosed this in a caption, raising questions about the appropriateness of using AI art for AI-related stories

Szauder is a mixed-media artist with over a decade of experience working with collage, video, and generative art processes predating commercial AI tools

The creepy imagery—featuring distorted alternate versions of Altman's face—illustrates the irony and potential controversy of illustrating AI stories with AI-generated content