Ai-Da, The World’s First Robot Artist Will Open A Contemporary Art Exhibit
AI-DA ROBOT: LEAPING INTO THE METAVERSE
A review by Tania Ignat
Is the world prepared? Are any of us really, for what is coming though. On the 23rd April Ai-Da, the first humanoid robot will exhibit her first collection at a major contemporary art exhibition. Before that, however, I was invited to preview what she is capable of at London’s British Library. Where Ai-Da, who has been assigned the pronouns she/her, became the first robot to paint in a freehand style, similarly to how artists have painted for centuries.
Ai-Da takes her name from Ada Lovelace as a tribute to the first computer programmer of all time. Her embodiment is a machine based on Artificial Intelligence capabilities, that draws from all the knowledge that exists at this time. Ai-Da itself is a manifestation of conceptual art and highlights the need to re-consider our perception of self through a new layer of interaction. A human-machine interaction that is providing relevant discussion points on the world we live in.
Holding onto a brush, and with slow movements, Ai-Da was dipping into an artist’s paint palette whilst creating strokes on the paper in front of her. She draws using cameras in her eyes, her AI algorithms, and her robotic arm. The existence of Ai-Da itself is challenging our own understanding of who we are as humans. But even more so it opens up a lot of questions about art. What is art, who makes art, who is art made for, and even more so why is art made.
We are already surrounded by multiple areas of life that rely on AI, including the way we interact with different companies. As a presence she does resemble a human and, in many ways, makes me wonder are we only accepting AI if it takes human form? She smiles, nods, and does a lot of the human non-verbal gestures, but that is just the outside layer to make us accept this new way of being.
A true collaborative approach was taken when developing Ai-Da. She was created in Oxford by Aidan Meller, built in Cornwall by Engineered Arts, and programmed internationally. Her drawing arm and drawing AI algorithms were by Salaheldin Al Abd and Ziad Abass, from Egypt. Her additional AI capabilities came from PHD students and professors at the Universities of Oxford and Birmingham.
If you are planning to take a trip to Venice between 23rd April to 3rd July, make time in your schedule. This once in a lifetime opportunity is in Venice’s famous Giardini area during the 59th International Art Exhibition – La Biennale di Venezia.
Photo Credit: Nicky Johnston
