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Recent advances in artificial intelligence have reinvigorated the longstanding debate regarding whether or not any aspects of human cognition—notably, high-level creativity—are beyond the reach of computer programs. Is human creativity entirely a computational process? Here I consider one general argument for a dissociation between human and artificial creativity, which hinges on the role of consciousness—inner experience—in human cognition. It appears unlikely that inner experience is itself a computational process, implying that it cannot be instantiated in an abstract Turing machine, nor in any current computer architecture. Psychological research strongly implies that inner experience integrates emotions with perception and with thoughts. This integrative function of consciousness likely plays a key role in mechanisms that support human creativity. This conclusion dovetails with the anecdotal reports of creative individuals, who have linked inner experience with intrinsic motivation to create, and with the ability to access novel connections between ideas.