A producer asked me last week whether a shot was "done with AI." I did not know how to answer. Which part? The rotoscope assist? The generative fill on a wire removal? The layout blocking a model suggested that we then hand-animated over?
The word has become a bucket so large it stopped meaning anything. And when a word stops meaning anything, people project their fears into it.
The vocabulary we actually use
On the floor nobody says "AI." We say "the denoiser," "the retimer," "the matte assist," "the solver." Specific tools with specific failure modes and specific people responsible for them. That precision is not pedantry — it is how you stay accountable.
I agree with David on the vocabulary, but I would go further. Producers will keep asking "was this AI" because they are really asking "who is accountable." Name the tool, yes — but name the artist louder.
The moment you name a tool precisely, the fear drains out and the craft conversation begins.
So here is my small proposal: retire the acronym in professional conversation. Say what the thing does. Name who is responsible. The clarity is worth it, and honestly, so is the calm.