Matter of taste

Taste is trending in Silicon Valley, although slightly differently from the philosophical taste. Taste, typically a subtopic of aesthetics, is concerned with art and beauty. The Valley expands its definition with a cultural sensitivity and an understanding of quality product design. No matter the terminology, both are cultivated through immersion and deliberate exposure–through experience.

California loves the concept because, in a world where artificial intelligence homogenizes everything, taste is an excellent differentiator. The thought goes: hire people who have the sensibility of what is in and let technology build it. Pitfalls aside, pretty much anyone can “vibe-code” anything, yet no LLM can develop insights into cultural relevance.

Sure, some argue that AI can develop cultural understanding through training, but that misunderstands what taste is. LLMs lack the richness and intentionality inherent to human perception. They lack the embodied foundation to understand culture and instead parrot statistically likely combinations of words. A machine will not develop taste, because it’s not objective knowledge.

More than personal preference

Taste is more than one person’s gut reaction to quality and standards. “She has good taste” means we not only agree with her natural capability, we also recognize that she can distinguish quality features that are understood and validated by experts and others within the same group context.

Taste is developed through education, immersion, and a sensitivity to social context. Educators teach the heuristics (rules of thumb) of the group aesthetic: a framework or theory to think with. Once we have that foundation, we need to deliberately practice with and expose ourselves to examples of good quality.

When the novelty of exposure wears off, our more complex perception kicks in. We start seeing things differently. The combination of knowledge, experience, and intuition helps us develop a deeper appreciation for what we’re experiencing—often in a more detailed and subtle way than a layperson. Eventually we develop specialized vocabularies and habits that make us observe more in the works. We compare with other works, discuss with experts, and practice similar forms.

Over time, these social and practical undertakings make our intuition more refined and personal; with that comes enhanced emotional resonance, an understanding of originality, and cultural richness. Then influencers (for example, artists) present ideas that expand what is considered quality, and so taste keeps evolving. This one of the reasons I am worried about AI and the arts.

Taste evolves in all domains and often cross-pollinates between them (e.g., music influencing fashion). Programmers learn to recognize good code, musicians develop “an ear,” and designers recognize quality beyond theory. Taste is what separates us from machines; it is an inherent human experience. I’ll be watching our tech bros misrepresent it and make it a commercial good.