Over the last decade, we have witnessed AI increasingly
become more interwoven into our daily lives. During this relatively short
period of time we have witnessed the birth of GPT-3 (a model that uses deep learning to produce human-like text),
self-driving vehicles, and many other technologies that have become key in the
development of modern day society.
اضافة اعلان
One of the challenges with AI, as discussed in our
GPT-3 article, is a machine’s inability (or difficulty) to make inferences
into subject matters. As a result, anything that requires creativity is
generally seen as an incredibly challenging task for a machine to handle.
While GPT-3’s interview was definitely something to be awed
by, Ai-Da; the walking, talking, and eerily human looking robot that paints is
starting to tour the world in hopes of spreading her message as well as her
works.
Ai-Da: Behind the mask
Ai-Da, named after the British mathematician Ada Lovelace,
is an AI that was designed by Oxford’s Aidan Meller, and has been successfully
embedded into a robotic framework that enables the AI to interact with physical
objects as a human would.
The AI was designed over the course of several years, with
much of its modeling data coming directly from the internet. Many AI-based
research teams across the globe have been unilateral on their consensus of this
painter’s existence — nothing short of a miracle.
Ai-Da began painting in early 2020, and her work was made
publicly available shortly thereafter. Some of her work is held in London’s
Design Museum, giving the public an opportunity to take a look into the
“creative” mind of an AI.
This isn’t just a walking, talking printer. Unlike previous
artistic AI that would either copy a scene or use an existing image for
inspiration, Ai-Da is capable of creating completely unique artworks from her
own “mind.”
This is especially impressive, as the concepts of
inspiration and creativity are incredibly difficult to implement. And whether
or not someone or something is able to draw or paint creative works with no
pre-requisites, such as will, is a philosophical discussion that many have been
debating over for years.
The AI hosts shows where it puts its skills on display for
onlookers, all the while giving the crowd an opportunity to interact with the
AI in Q&A sessions. While her chassis is made visible along with her hands,
her torso and face are covered with a skin-like mask that enables expressions
of emotions as well as mouth movement that makes her appear more human.
If you were to just view her paintings and interviews, and
you were not aware of her “technical” nature, you might be hard pressed to find
any real indications that Ai-Da isn’t in fact a person, but rather, a machine.
In many ways, this is a clear cut indication that the AI would be a candidate
for the Turing test (a method for determining whether or not an AI is capable
of thinking like a human). However, Meller declined to answer whether or not he
would ever consider testing Ai-Da.
Meller stated that his fascination on the distance between
human and machine art was his main driving force behind creating Ai-Da. The
current iteration of Ai-Da is considered to have a composite persona, with the
artist having many modules that enable multi-faceted interactions that expand
the scope of her communicability.
Until now, Ai-Da has sold several paintings for over $1
Million, much of which went back into financing and continuing to develop the
aspiring artist. Mueller stated that he plans on expanding the total sample
reach of her inspiration, which currently focuses on the mid-to-late 20th
centuries.
What about traditional art then?
The inevitable debate on the horizon is how can a machine’s
creation be considered art? And what happens to the value of human art if
machines start creating art that mimics or even supersedes the qualities of
human-made work?
Whereas, the arguments in the past were cemented by machines’
inability to be creative, it is no longer possible to overlook the potential
ramifications of such a technological turn of the page. What if creativity too,
inevitably, is outsourced to machines?
While we are definitely not at the level of outright dehumanization
of art, it is important to keep these ideas in mind. Those in favor of
AI-driven creative work often state that machines such as Ai-Da are a novelty
in the sector, and that much of the value from her paintings is derived from
that uniqueness. Over time however, this will fade, and her work will no longer
be as sought after as they are today.
In the end, only time will tell whether or not something as
highly creative as artistry will be given an opportunity to flourish on its
own, or to become an outright replacement for its human counterpart.
To see some of Ai-Da’s work, you can head to their official site and go through some
of her latest work in finer detail. If you’re up for the trip, as of writing of
this article, Ai-Da is currently touring through Egypt, so if you’re feeling
extra adventurous, it could make a great addition to a quick vacation.
.jpg)
.jpg)
