July 13, 2026
Someone's Providing a Budget Option
...and boy are folks mad.
The illustration has nothing to do with the article other than the fact that I posted it.
In the comments sidebar Mauser suggests that I use Leaflit's new budget V-tuber .png hybrid system.
I have been looking at it and considered it. It appears to be a cleverly designed, and robust system that in some ways would be a visual improvement on my current V-Roid rig.
The down side of this is that most of my artist friends would be hurt and they would skin me alive roll me in salt, dip me in iodine, have me shot in the neck, and scream like maniacs while urinating on my corpse, before desecrating my grave.
Now, one might think to oneself: "Dude, get better artist friends"
However, it is important to remember that artists are very emotional people. That's how they can do art. I actually think it's part of their source code.
That.
Being.
Said.
I've seen a LOT of unspeakable hate directed at Leaflit for this and while I'm horrified by and utterly disavow the sheer unhinged nature of much of the vitriol directed at her, I do( kind of) understand the anxiety.
A.I. art is a brutal pill.
Most of us do not quite grok this, but these folks have been told all their lives that their talents make them immune to this sort of displacement. That being replaced by technology is the fate of the uncreative, the working class, or those who have nothing to offer.
In the '90s and early 2000's I saw article after article and heard from professors in college in the last decade that the "creative class" was who society was organized around, and often heard it implied or outright stated by thought leaders or teachers that those not of the creative classes were...lesser, and deserved their fate.
It is easy to get angry about this if, like me, you're background is the blue collar professions that creatives so look down upon, as their jobs were, in many cases, shipped overseas.
However:
It is also important to remember that THIS IS WHAT THEY WERE TAUGHT. It is also completely natural that someone with artistic talent would develop friendships in the creative class and assume its attitudes and outlooks both good and bad. Furthermore, an artistic person, being (not always, but often) more emotional than many of us who lack the talent to draw are going to react negatively to the most human thing being usurped by a computer.
The offshoring of the blue collar industries was one of the great betrayals and strategic mistakes of our civilization. It caused untold hurt and agony to the middle of the country.
Likewise, this certainly feels similar to those affected. They are contemplating loosing their jobs and that is a dreadful thing. It stings for them more because they were told all their lives that they are special and that being creative made them immune to this. We can, I suppose, if we want to be asshats, mock that, but this must truly feel like a betrayal.
As someone who does not always agree with Leaflit, particularly recently, I nevertheless feel the need to both thank her for her efforts and reassure those who are on the verge bringing out the long knives and engraved bullets for her.
I have not looked at the Budget V-Tubing System in depth as it is not finished yet, but it does seem to fulfill a need and be a labor of love. Leaflit is making a big push to make it user friendly. This seems to be a passion for her and as a person neither skilled in art nor coding, I'm grateful for the effort, even as I'm unsure if I'll use it.
For those who feel threatened by this, I would posit that this particular endeavor does not threaten you at all.
This is aimed at folks who cannot afford a fully rigged model. You would get no money from them anyway. This is aimed at .PNG tubers like I used to be, or those who are using services like V-Roid like I am now. Leaflit's demonstrations clearly show that, while a vast upgrade from .PNG tubing, it is still not as versatile and visually seamless as a full-on rigged 3-D or even 2-D model.
A full upgrade to something like Leaflit's normal model or that of Ironmouse, or any of the really elaborate rigs is unlikely to be achievable with this. And someone with the traffic levels to justify that kind of upgrade will likely still hire an artist and a good rigger.
A.I. has unfathomable potential to make the future better, However, it has been and will continue to be disruptive and infuriating in ways that many folks did not foresee. Rather than dismissing the lamentations of those displaced by it, show them at least some sympathy. They are having a crash out that, while misdirected and hate filled is , while wrong, is at least understandable, and is an expression of real pain and fear.
And for my artist friends crashing out, I would remind you to tone down the rhetoric a bit. Violence is not the answer to this any more than it was a valid response to someone who lost their manufacturing job to globalization.
Also, bullets and knives don't work on slimes, so maybe...chill?
Posted by: The Brickmuppet at
10:37 AM
| Comments (1)
| Add Comment
Post contains 903 words, total size 120 kb.
Posted by: Mauser at Mon Jul 13 20:43:55 2026 (XWgGM)
151kb generated in CPU 0.1669, elapsed 0.2167 seconds.
71 queries taking 0.1894 seconds, 385 records returned.
Powered by Minx 1.1.6c-pink.
71 queries taking 0.1894 seconds, 385 records returned.
Powered by Minx 1.1.6c-pink.
