Graphic Recording & AI

Julia Bakay
3 hours ago
5 min read

What is Graphic Recording, and can it be done by AI?

Graphic Recording is the art of listening to conversations and events, and turning them into a cohesive map of visual notes in real-time.

GRAPHIC RECORDING

Let's start by stating that, as of now, AI can't do Graphic Recording at all.

The reason why I felt the need to explore this topic is because Graphic Recording is a complex skillset, and AI has proven to be able to master some of those skills... so that raises the question... will it take over this niche and wonderful profession?

Essential Skills for Graphic Recording: Where AI Falls Short

What skills are needed for Graphic Recording, and does AI have them?

Synthesizing information
AI is great at synthesizing information; it can connect info in logical ways. This is one area where AI excels, pulling together data efficiently. AI is good as a support tool for capturing the content, but often falls short on nuance, context, and reliability, so it's a risk to share it without a deeper review.
Illustrating concepts
AI can illustrate ideas, but will go for the most often used icons, which makes the graphic boring when you explore it at a deeper level. Humans, on the other hand, make a real effort to bring originality and depth, drawing from personal insights to create visuals that resonate to the audience in the room.
Creating aesthetic and tasteful visuals

In general, AI art is more often tacky - taste is subjective, but AI tends to produce generic, over-polished outputs lacking nuance. A skilled Visual Note-taker will curate aesthetics that feel authentic, relevant, and personal to the organization.
Subtlety and sensitivity
None in AI. Human graphic recorders infuse empathy and emotional layers, capturing the subtle tones of discussions that algorithms overlook.
Interpersonal skills
None. Graphic recording often involves real-time collaboration, reading the room, and building rapport - skills AI simply doesn't possess.
Flexibility & Sense of Judgement

Have you ever watched an AI confidently serve you a completely wrong answer, then - when you point out the mistake - instantly grovel, apologize, and flip to a new version as if nothing happened?

That’s not flexibility - it's not having the expertise, and just doing what we're told. Graphic Recorders need a great sense of judgement, as by its nature, the process often involves having to shift directions completely.
Combining all the above

Now this is the main reason why AI can't do Graphic Recording....

True Graphic Recording is far too complex for AI to master.

A skilled human graphic recorder listens closely, synthesises ideas in real time, arranges them tastefully and logically on the canvas, adds witty and relevant illustrations, and constantly weaves everything into a cohesive whole.

Due to the nature of events and conversations, the ability to adapt and self-correct is key in Graphic Recording.

I go back on myself hundreds of times - moving, erasing, improving, shrinking, expanding, and reconnecting elements as the conversation evolves - without ever needing to be told.

Graphic Recording Artist - Human Visual Notetaker

AI can’t do that organically. It won’t spot a better metaphor halfway through the panel and spontaneously rework the layout. It won’t edit earlier sections unless you explicitly prompt it, and even then it rarely understands why the change matters. Most importantly, AI can’t hold a creative planning call with you, ask the right questions, or feel the energy of your event.

In short, the depth, adaptability, taste, and human connection at the heart of great graphic recording remain firmly out of AI’s reach.

To get anything close to a professional result, the client would first have to become an expert in graphic recording, just to write the perfect prompts - and then spend even more time editing the AI generated art.

What if a Graphic Recorder used AI?

So someone needs to manage the robot along the way... What if a skilled Graphic Recording artist was to manage AI graphic recording during our event?

Real-time Visual Minuting using AI

Here's the fundamental problem with this - Graphic Recording is based on listening skills.

As a Graphic Recorder, I can draw while listening... but I'll never be able to talk while listening!

This highlights the inefficiency: no matter who does it, prompting AI stops you from being present during the process. Without being in the moment, you can't listen or be creative. Generating art with AI drains time and creativity, whereas creating a Graphic Recording by hand is an energizing and highly beneficial process.

Creating post-event visual notes with AI

So if live Visual Note-taking doesn't work with AI, how about post-event? All I know is that as an artist, in order to recreate one of my previous graphic recording pieces, I'd have to spend many hours typing or talking to AI... So doesn't it make more sense for me to draw it then?

Why we need adaptable humans for Graphic Recording

Good graphic recording is not just about the speed - you actually need to have your brain and heart in it to really convey the message in visuals. By the time I reach the end piece, I will have moved, shrunk, connected, erased, or combined elements on my canvas hundreds of times. It's an ever-evolving piece, and that's why I'm creating it real-time.

AI would take far too long to do Graphic Recording real-time. Current AI image generation tools, like those from Midjourney or DALL-E, may give you an initial output relatively fast, but adapting a complex, evolving canvas in live settings - responding to shifting conversations - isn't feasible without constant interruptions and revisions.

Human Graphic Recorders thrive here, turning the elements they captured into cohesive visuals on the spot.

You'll love working with a human (Graphic Recording) Artist

You can spend many hours prompting an AI drawing software, or instead, ust connect with a human, exercise your own creativity, and enjoy the process.

Working with a human Graphic Recording artist is an enjoyable, co-creative process - it's more than generating Visual Notes.

AI Graphic Recording is wasteful

If sustainability matters to you...

Adopting AI Graphic Recording would be incredibly wasteful. Data centers powering AI consume massive resources; for instance, AI-driven operations could guzzle 1.7 trillion gallons of water globally by 2027, equivalent to the needs of billions (University of California, Riverside study, 2023). Google alone used over 5 billion gallons in 2023 for cooling its servers (Google Environmental Report, 2024). Projections show AI infrastructure draining water equal to 6-10 million U.S. households annually (Cornell University study, Nature Sustainability, 2025).

It's actually far more sustainable to have a human artist draw - using just an ipad or paper, and minimal energy by joining your event remotely.

The future of AI Graphic Recording

Graphic Recording with AI might become a thing, but I believe it will just enhance the value of skilled human professionals. AI can handle mechanical tasks, freeing artists for the heartfelt, nuanced work that captivates, such as Live Graphic Recording. In the end, the human touch - empathy, taste, and a great sense of judgement - keeps our way of graphic recording irreplaceable.