Designer who made Meta Muse logo faces online backlash

In short: An independent designer who worked on Meta’s new Muse AI logo says she was hit with intense online harassment after sharing the project.

What's going on

Jessica Hische, a Bay Area lettering artist, took a freelance job to refine the “M” logo and wordmark for Meta’s new AI assistant called Muse. She told WIRED she expected some criticism because both AI and Meta are controversial. She said she still took the work because her client income has been slow and her two Oakland retail shops run on thin profits.

After Hische mentioned the project in her newsletter, the news spread quickly on Threads. Many designers criticized her for working with Meta at all. Some commenters accused her of “selling out,” and a few went further by posting photos of her house and speculating about her finances.

Hische responded publicly, saying she has only a few payroll cycles worth of cash on hand at times, and that she has four people on payroll, including herself. She also said she did not use generative AI to make the logo. Generative AI is the kind of AI that makes images or text, like a machine that can “draw” or “write” on command. She argued that hiring a human designer is better than replacing that work with AI.

What to watch

This episode shows how emotional the AI debate has become for many artists and designers, especially as some fear AI will replace paid creative work. It also highlights a growing problem for regular people online, criticism can quickly turn into personal harassment when a post goes viral.

Source: Wired