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Manchester Evening News
Manchester Evening News
National
Ramazani Mwamba

How a Salfordian author used AI to turn the Trafford Centre into a stunning rainforest

The man behind Trafford Centre’s stunning transformation into a dystopian rainforest says he used AI to reimagine the centre because he believes it is ‘outdated’. Bryan Blears shared images of the Trafford Centre looking drastically different from before thanks to the AI image software called Midjourney.

Bryan created the photos by writing particular prompts and using pre-existing images of the Trafford Centre to tell the AI what his vision was. Bryan said he decided to have a go at Midjourney after a recent trip to the Trafford Centre where he thought the place could do with more ‘greenery’.

READ MORE: What is My AI on Snapchat and what can it do?

Speaking to the MEN he said: “I had an idea like that ages ago when I was walking around the Trafford centre. I just thought to myself, 'do you know what would be dead good? If they turned it into a massive green house.'

“I think the building is really nice and I like the big open windows, but there’s not too much greenery. They need some trees.

“You go to the food hall and it’s starting to look a little outdated.”

From Salford, Bryan, who is an author says he has taken a keen interest in artificial intelligence and the conversation on how it should be used. Describing Midjourney as ‘addictive’ he says the tool and reaction to his photos have inspired him to transform more iconic Manchester landmarks.

Bryan Blears (ABNM Photography)

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Speaking to the MEN he said: “I’ve been messing about with it and I’m already getting results that are even better. It’s really interesting because of how simple it is.

“I love the idea but obviously it needs to be properly regulated. A lot of people have quite a lot of controversial views on what you should or shouldn’t do with AI.

“The use of AI could put people out of their jobs. Particularly in the writing world people are a bit scared. I’m very aware of using it in that sense."

The Trafford Centre have been approached for comment.

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