As
generative artificial intelligence (GenAI) increasingly integrates into design
processes, branding a domain where creativity and originality are key strategic
assets—encounters both opportunities and challenges. This theoretical paper
merges new empirical research, legal updates, and human-computer interaction
(HCI) viewpoints to explore how AI-powered design tools influence creative
thought and the originality of brand outcomes. We combine studies on human-AI
collaboration, divergent and convergent thinking, automation bias, and
intellectual property (IP) frameworks with a conceptual methods section that
offers a framework for assessing “originality” and “creativity” in the context
of AI enhancement. Evidence indicates that AI tools can enhance the speed of
ideation, broaden the range of concepts explored, and improve the perceived
creative quality among peers; however, they may also lead to design fixation,
standardize visual styles, and create challenges regarding authorship and
trademark uniqueness. Originality in
branding within the context of artificial intelligence should be
reconceptualized as a team property that emerges from human direction, data
provenance, and system affordances, rather than solely as a characteristic of
output artifacts. A governance-by-design agenda is proposed, incorporating
bias-aware prompts, mixed-initiative interaction, and legal-ethical guardrails
to maintain distinctiveness and cultural authenticity in brand identity systems.
