Instacart is using "the magic of AI" to write recipes and generate surreal images of the food. [View all]

[highplainsdem]

This story's from Business Insider..Tweet from one of their staffers, with photos, then excerpts from the article, which has more AI images.

Link to tweet

https://www.businessinsider.com/instacart-ai-art-recipes-photos-2024-1

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As first spotted in the Instacart subreddit, the images have all the hallmarks of AI-generated imagery. Business Insider confirmed the photos and found several more by searching for common ingredients or recipes like "chicken," "cheese," or "cookie."

Many of the pictures have physically impossible or unlikely compositions, unnatural shadows, and the blending of two visually similar elements into one object. Take, for instance, this photo for "Hot Dog Stir Fry," in which a hot dog has the interior texture of a tomato.

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The text for the ingredients and instructions for the above recipes, meanwhile, is also generated by AI, as disclosed by Instacart itself: "This recipe is powered by the magic of AI, so that means it may not be perfect. Check temperatures, taste, and season as you go. Or totally switch things up — you're the head chef now. Consult product packaging to confirm any dietary or nutritional information which is provided here for convenience only. Make sure to follow recommended food safety guidelines."

A search of Instacart's site for the above text string returned over 8,000 results for recipes ranging from "Grilled Asparagus" to "Argentine Torta de Ricota."

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I used the Google search link in the BI article and got over 9,000 results.

https://www.google.com/search?q=site%3Ainstacart.com+%22This+recipe+is+powered+by+the+magic+of+AI%2C+so+that+means+it+may+not+be+perfect.%22

Another thread from that Reddit forum, with screenshots from Instacart:

https://www.reddit.com/r/instacart/comments/1ad275h/more_aigenerated_photos_instacart_is_using_for/

I looked at a couple of different Instacart recipes from the Google results, not Business Insider or Reddit. Just chosen at random from Google results.

The directions, which come with a list of ingredients to order (probably also AI-generated), were interesting.

A chocolate cake with frosting included ingredients for frosting but no directions or even amounts to mix.

A recipe for apple pie included directions for rolling out the bottom crust and making a lattice top crust, but the list for ordering groceries had two graham cracker crusts.

So there were problems with just the first two recipes I looked at.

Isn't AI magical?