Abstract

The rapid and recent advancements in generative Artificial Intelligence (AI), particularly within the realm of art, are challenging the notion of creativity as an exclusively human attribute. Generative models themselves exhibit a "combinatorial" ability to produce new and original elements by combining pre-existing data. This scenario calls for a critical and extensive examination of the underlying mechanisms that drive both human and artificial creativity. By conducting a comparative analysis of cognitive elements and computational mechanisms underlying human and artificial creative processes, we aim to clarify their characteristics, points of contact, and divergence. In particular, it will be shown that human creativity is characterized by specific dimensions – intentional, embodied, inter-subjective, self-conscious/self-expressive and individual – which mark its peculiarity and distinguish it from the artificial one. Based on this overview, a better understanding of the specificity of human creativity can be achieved, along with insights on how to enhance it.