# 100,000-Person Study: AI Tops Average Creativity, but the Best Humans Still Lead > AI now matches and sometimes tops average creativity tests. But on richer work-poems, stories, voice-the best humans still pull ahead, so use models for breadth and keep your taste. - Type: AI news - Page: https://completeaitraining.com/news/100000-person-study-ai-tops-average-creativity-but-the-best/ - Published: 2026-01-26 - Updated: 2026-02-19 - Author: Jeroen Erne - Jobs: Creatives - Reading time: 2 min ### AI can beat average creativity - but the best ideas are still human A massive study of 100,000 people compared today's top language models with human creativity. On several tests, models like GPT-4 outperformed the average participant. That's a shift worth paying attention to. The ceiling is clear though. The most creative humans - especially the top 10% - outpaced every AI on richer tasks like poetry, stories, and plot development. Baseline ideation is getting automated. Taste, voice, and meaning remain your edge. #### What the researchers tested The team, led from Université de Montréal with contributors from Mila, Concordia, University of Toronto Mississauga, and Google DeepMind, used the Divergent Association Task (DAT), a common measure in [AI Research](https://completeaitraining.com/tag/research/). It asks for ten words that are as unrelated as possible - a fast way to gauge divergent thinking. Example: "galaxy, fork, freedom, algae, harmonica, quantum, nostalgia, velvet, hurricane, photosynthesis." They didn't stop at word lists. The study also scored haiku, movie plot summaries, and short stories. Pattern held: some models beat average participants, but skilled human writers were consistently stronger and more original. #### Why this matters for creatives AI is now competent at first-pass ideation. You can get broader option sets, faster. That means you can spend more time on selection, synthesis, and concept - where the work actually stands out. The upside: less staring at a blank page. The challenge: differentiating your taste from the same models everyone else uses. #### Practical ways to use this today - Kick off briefs with a DAT-style word list to widen your concept space. Then combine, remix, or discard. - Use AI for volume: 20 hooks, 15 plot angles, 10 metaphors - then curate hard. - Switch perspectives: ask for ideas from contrasting archetypes or opposing values to avoid sameness. - Iterate constraints: shorter, weirder, stricter rules often produce fresher angles. #### Dial AI creativity with settings and prompts - Temperature: lower (~0.2-0.4) for safer drafts; higher (~0.9-1.2) for more surprising options. - Etymology trick: ask the model to consider word origins and structure before generating options. This boosts unexpected associations. - Prompt frame: "List 10 unrelated words, then explain the distance between each pair." The explanation step reduces shallow randomness. - Multi-pass loop: generate → shortlist → combine → escalate constraints → refine voice. #### Where humans still win - Voice that feels lived-in, not generic. - Conceptual leaps across domains that models rarely connect with intent. - Emotional accuracy: what to leave unsaid, how to pace, when to break a rule. #### Quality checks for better outputs - Define "original" up front: novelty, usefulness, and fit with the brief. - Score variations against your criteria; don't rely on vibes alone. - Mix AI-generated sparks with your own references and observations. - Run a final pass for clichés, tone drift, and over-explanation. #### Key details from the study - Models tested included GPT-4, [Claude](https://completeaitraining.com/tag/claude/), Gemini, among others. - More than 100,000 human participants were compared on the same tasks. - Top-half humans beat every model on average; the top 10% widened the gap further, especially on writing. - Creativity can be adjusted via technical settings and instruction design, not just model choice. #### Learn more Read the open-access paper in Scientific Reports: [Divergent creativity in humans and large language models](https://doi.org/10.1038/s41598-025-25157-3?ref=completeaitraining.com). Explore the DAT here: [datcreativity.org](https://www.datcreativity.org/?ref=completeaitraining.com). #### Want to train prompts that produce fresher ideas? Sharpen your workflow with practical prompt frameworks and creative drills. Start here: [Prompt Engineering resources](https://completeaitraining.com/tag/prompt-engineering/). The takeaway: let AI handle breadth; you own depth. Use models to stretch the option space, then apply your judgment to make the work hit. --- This is the Markdown form of https://completeaitraining.com/news/100000-person-study-ai-tops-average-creativity-but-the-best/. The whole site is mapped at https://completeaitraining.com/llms.txt.