How AI improved my boating experience, saved me a fortune and embellished my rugged boater good looks

Special note – ALL these photos are bogus

By  John Morris

How well do we know each other? Sure, we’ve had a couple of pops and reminisced about sunnier days cruising the Caribbean, but what you didn’t know is that it is my lifelong ambition to drive a classic Riva on Lake Como.

There are, or were, a couple of hitches in making my fantasy a reality. First, the cost of a classic Riva is daunting and they are scarce. Online I found a lovely one in Milan, but depending on which model and year, the price pushes two mil CDN. Then you need to ship it here to Balsam Lake. Et cetera.

I say ‘were’ because thanks to the magic of AI, I have been able to put myself in the seat of this dream boat with nothing more than my Mac. Since it’s the current hot topic, there are dozens of AI programs around. I picked the first one I found and with zero back study, started to bring my dream to life. ‘John driving a turquoise trim Riva on Lake Como’ I typed and bingo, here I am below at the helm looking very Italian at high speed. Unfortunately, the AI program messed up and put me in Riva-looking boat but not the real thing. My AI  education was evolving — be specific! Nonetheless, my heart was beating as I  contemplated zooming across the lake to a café stocked with charming waiters and Aperol Spritz. Wrong boat however, so I picked a different AI and was more precise. ‘John driving a restored 1975 Riva Aquarama’. You can see above that the AI program in this case has made me considerably more confident looking (but maybe added a few pounds). The only problem is that it’s tough to believe I have three friends who all wear those striking red and white striped vests. Or perhaps I do, lemme think.

While I was in artificial intelligence mode, I took a shot at another reverie. Could I win a SailGP race? With AI magic, I certainly could. As you can see in the AI-generated shot, the program beefed up my biceps to add credibility. By blurring the crew in the background you cannot see their looks of wonderment — who is this guy anyhow? But we will just keep that among us and allow me to achieve the win I could never have aspired to.

For my final attempt on the fake Riva composition, I typed in some of the romance of the Riva Aquarama, the most famous of Carlo Riva’s designs, mentioned some movie stars and hoped for the best. As you can see from the resulting photo below, the program found a classic and popped a simulated-me in the driver seat, adding clean shave square jaw, a suit and a smooth fedora. From now on, I will picture myself like that whatever boat I am on!

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