AI didn’t steal your creativity , it gave it wings 🪽

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TL;DR:

In this interview, Garth shows us how AI isn’t the enemy of creativity, It’s a tool that helps you push past blocks and stretch your ideas in new, unexpected directions. 🤖

By feeding AI detailed, real-life prompts and trusting your instincts, you can keep the emotional heart of your work alive 💖 while moving faster than ever ⚡. Garth also explains how businesses can use AI to amplify their unique voice 🔊, test ideas quickly 🧪, and build immersive brand worlds 🌍 that really connect with people.

The key takeaway? AI is not a shortcut or a threat ,it’s a tool to help creatives and brands shine brighter together. 🚀

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We’ve all heard the noise 📢

AI is coming for your job, your creativity, your voice. What if we’ve been looking at it all wrong? 👀

In this unfiltered interview, we sat down with Garth, a creative force known for surreal and cinematic campaigns to explore how AI is not replacing human creativity , it is amplifying it 🔥

Garth explains how he uses AI to move past creative blocks 🚧 spark unexpected ideas 💡 and preserve the emotional core of every piece 💓 This conversation dives into what makes a brand world feel real 🌍 why the right prompt matters 🧠 and how AI can speed up the process without sacrificing the magic ✨

Whether you're a marketer, designer, or founder 💼 this is the kind of perspective shift that leaves a lasting impression 💭

🤖🎨 Let’s rethink AI not as a shortcut or a threat, but as the most powerful creative collaborator of our time 🚀

I am Garth Manthe, founder of by COB, where strategy meets playful provocation. I use generative AI to turn ordinary brands into stories people talk about at braais. From cheeky LinkedIn satire to full‑scale campaign worlds, my work proves that tech and human insight can share the same table and still leave space for surprise.

👉🏾 Joy: There’s a lot of debate around AI “stealing” from human creativity. But what if AI is the key to creative freedom? How can creatives use it to push past their own limitations?

Garth: First, drop the heist movie script. AI is not lifting your brushes at midnight. It is a relentless idea generator that smashes the safety rails you built around your own taste. I start by briefing it with brutal clarity. Give me forty taglines that sound like Tarantino writing for Innocent Drinks. The model spits out the brilliant, the bizarre, and the downright illegal. That raw chaos is gold.

Next comes the human layer. I sift with my gut, looking for lines that punch, visuals that carry cultural nuance, rhythm that makes a room go quiet. Because the cost of failure has collapsed to near zero, I can test wild directions before lunch and bin them by tea time.

AI expands the distance between first spark and polished gem. Spend that extra space on craft and emotion. The result feels more human, not less, because you finally had room to chase the one idea that gives you goosebumps.

👉🏾 Joy: We know that AI can generate endless ideas quickly. But how can creatives still maintain human touch and keep ads emotionally resonant in a world where tech is in charge?

Garth: Emotion is not about visible brush strokes. It lives in context, tension, and tone. Feed the model lived detail, not generic decks. If we are selling data in Khayelitsha, the prompt includes Sunday braais and the early taxi run, not a stock photo brief. Then build tension.

Ask for the inconvenient truth that no one will print. Great work sits where desire meets discomfort. Finally, stamp the brand voice so clearly the output arrives wearing its accent.

My prompts specify things like “a warm aunt who binge reads Black Mirror”. What comes back is on key but never done. I read every line aloud. If my throat tightens, it stays. If it sounds like words on a slide, it goes back into the loop. Tech drafts fast, humans tune feeling. That duet keeps the soul intact.

Visuals by Garth Manthe

👉🏾 Joy: What would you say to the business owner who’s still asking, “is AI a shortcut or a threat?” and what’s a better question they should be asking instead?

Garth: The shortcut versus threat debate ended when electricity beat candles. The sharper question is “how do I train this tool to amplify what makes us different”. AI mirrors whatever you feed it. A dull story in, means dull automation out. A distinctive positioning in, means content that never sleeps.

Start with one clear problem. Maybe you spend six weeks on product shots. Use AI to mock up the full range overnight. If sales tick up, the fear melts. If nothing moves, you just learned your story needs work, not your toolset. Treat AI as an amplifier. It makes strong voices louder and weak voices painfully obvious. That is not a threat. It is a diagnosis.

👉🏾 Joy: You’ve created work that feels cinematic, surreal, emotional — how can brands use that kind of world‑building to make people care about their story, not just their product?

Garth: World‑building is strategy wearing VR goggles. Pick a single myth for your brand, then veto anything that drifts. Nike worships potential. Apple champions rebellion. Next, anchor the senses. Choose a smell, a cadence, a colour palette that appears everywhere from packaging to push notification.

AI lets you prototype these universes at speed. I have built mood boards that move, complete with generative soundtracks that darken when the user pauses scrolling. Once stakeholders can taste the tone, budgets unlock. Weave narrative into utility.

A banking app could render spending history as a personalised comic strip. A telco store could project coverage maps that bloom like galaxies. The tech is ready. The missing piece is the courage to press publish 💪🏼.

When you give AI the keys to your imagination. Visuals by Garth Manthe

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