‘AI God,’ a painting of computer pioneer Alan Turing (1912–1954) produced by humanoid robot Ai-Da will be on the auction block at Sotheby’s from October 31–November 7. The robot, built by an Oxford-based research group, is believed to be the first of its kind.
At Popular Science, Andrew Paul reports
Completed in 2019 by gallerist Aidan Meller in collaboration with Oxford University researchers and the robotics company, Engineered Arts, Ai-Da uses cameras to capture visual inputs that onboard graphics algorithms then use to formulate generative images with some human guidance and adjustments. From there, the digital designs are recreated on paper using paint brushes controlled by its two bionic arms.
“A humanoid robot’s painting called ‘AI God’ may sell for over $120,000,” Oct 17, 2024
The roboticists, who provide the robot with some guidance, are really into their project:
Ai-Da’s designers often dress it in a variety of wardrobes including dresses and overalls, and even occasionally go so far as to add jewelry such as necklaces. Since its debut, Ai-Da performed at a TED Talk and in front of the UK’s House of Lords through the use of a large language model (LLM) that answered pre-written human questions and inputs. Meanwhile, its artwork has been displayed around the world, including a five-panel polyptych at the United Nations during its AI for Global Good Summit in May 2024. – “Over $120,000,”
The philosophy behind the project, Paul tells us, is the 1985 Cyborg Manifesto by Donna Haraway, which urges us all to reject “rigidly defined conceptual boundaries between humans, animals, and machines.”
It will be interesting to see whether robotic painting turns out to be a blip (like elephant painting) or a trend.
You may also wish to read: AI-using artist who claimed “art is dead” seeks copyright anyway Maybe art isn’t dead; it is just going online. In that case, new payment structures and, as a last resort, data poisoning may be part of the mix.