How content creator Marwan Sallam’s anti-AI movement is reclaiming human connection

⛔🤖 AI is seeping into the fabric of our daily lives, invading workplaces and creeping into our most intimate moments of connection. More and more, we rely on algorithms to express ourselves rather than seeking out — or perhaps to avoid — our own voice. As this footprint expands, the boundary between technology as a mere tool and its direct impact on how we live, view ourselves, and perceive others is rapidly dissolving, reshaping our relationship with creativity and human connection itself.

Yet, as algorithms take the upper hand in thinking and production, a counter-movement is taking shape. It seeks to reclaim the very experiences machines cannot undergo on our behalf — drawing by hand, speaking face-to-face, crafting things from scratch, and spending time with others without a digital buffer. Inspired by this modern dilemma, content creator Marwan Sallam (LinkedIn) launched the Anti-AI Club: a space designed to revive the human side of creativity, without opposing technology or calling for its abandonment.

The club launched with an interactive evening that brought together dozens of artists, content creators, and creative thinkers around an experience built entirely on human handiwork. “The concept is by no means an absolute rejection of technology or a radical call to boycott it,” Sallam tells EnterpriseAM. “It grew out of a question that has been on my mind: What happens to our emotional world and our skills when relying on ready-made smart tools becomes the easiest and only option, even for things we used to think through and labor to make ourselves?”

Sallam’s interest in building this interactive space did not start with the current AI wave. It took shape back in 2018 upon his return to Egypt after a decade in Sharjah, when he moved to Alexandria for university. Throughout his college years, he cycled through marketing, social media management, content creation, and video editing. Living abroad and bouncing between the Gulf and Egypt led him to spot a growing need for what he calls a third space — places where people can gather outside of home and work without the barrier of excessive spending just to hang out and meet others.

Sallam tested the concept through several gatherings and events, which confirmed his hunch: the issue was not a lack of interest in human connection, but rather the need for a genuine catalyst to bring people together.

The Anti-AI night began as a real-world answer to these motivations — what can we create together when we set smart tools aside? The idea was inspired by international models, adapted to fit the local context, and launched first in Cairo before moving to Alexandria, Sallam explains. Digital artists, painters, and designers were invited to bring their paper, sketchbooks, and hand tools. Participants sat side by side, drawing and exchanging real-time feedback on their work. In Alexandria, the experience unfolded even more spontaneously when a participant brought an oud; live music blended with various artistic practices and lively discussions, turning the venue into an open room for art and conversation.

The evening also featured panel discussions among creators exploring a nuanced question: When is AI a helpful tool, and when does it become an unnecessary shortcut that erodes our writing, self-expression, and creative skills? The goal was not to hand down answers or enforce a specific stance, but to let the experience itself grapple with these questions. If the point is to test the value of human effort, there is no better way than sitting together and exchanging ideas face-to-face.

Around 50 people attended the inaugural Cairo event, while the Alexandria session drew 20 attendees in a space that could barely hold that many. The gatherings sparked meaningful, spontaneous moments as participants admired one another’s work for the first time, engaged in artistic debate, and eventually began discussing joint projects and collaboration prospects after the event wrapped up, according to Sallam.

So, what happens after the club nights end? Sallam hopes these artist gatherings will take on a life of their own beyond his initiative, with participants organizing their own meetups and carving out new spaces to connect and collaborate without needing a permanent liaison.

Is it a rejection of technology or a return to the human touch? Sallam believes the impact of technology comes down to how we use it. He occasionally noticed a dip in his own critical thinking or productivity when instant answers were readily available through tools like ChatGPT — raising questions about our need to sharpen human skills in tandem with the rapid evolution of smart tech.

For him, trial and error remain vital parts of the creative process, whereas reaching a finished product too quickly cuts short the journey of learning and discovery. Furthermore, he notes that effortless screen-to-screen communication does not ensure deeper relationships, which pushed him — despite working constantly behind a screen — to actively create prospects for people to share the same physical room.