ETHICO

VIDEO GAME - 2024

Artificial Intelligence is everywhere. Many use it daily and see it as humanities greatest invention,
other scream impeding doom. However, for how present it is, there is noticeable lack of
understanding and little talk about meaningful regulation.

Ethico is a game designed to confront the player with their own opinion on AI Ethics and the
surrounding dilemmas. Drawing on a large qualitative research on how the Views and Opinions on

Artificial Intelligence are shaped by ones own understanding of the technicalities behind it, Ethico
aims to make this connection visible as well as provide education around the topic. Further will it
give a guide into ones personal position in the debate surrounding AI

The Player is an intern at a tech startup, tasked with helping clients regulate their AI Products.
During this he meets a multitude of characters whom he can interact with freely. Max, the
manager however seems very busy, compared to Olivia, the helpful research assistant, always
eager to answer all questions surrounding AI. How the players decisions influence their behavior
and the further process of the game is left to be discovered.

Explore Further:

EHICO Online (Unreleased, coming end of March 2024)

Related Blog Posts

EHICO was realized at Design Investigations, at the University of Applied Arts Vienna.

#GRWM:

PREPARING FOR TOMORROW

SPECULATIVE OBJECTS & MULTIMEDIA INSTALLATION - 2023

Narratives of certain futures have become a major marketing tool. Especially western capitalist future visions present themselves in a desireable way, while only representing a slim part of society.

Negative visions are only presented as transitionary periods, since no decrease in living standard is acceptable. A given vision presents itself as the sole truth, relying on a belief in theoretical technological advancements to fill narrative gaps. There is no need for criticism since as soon a centain point of desire is reached, the capitalistic nature will solve itself and inequalities will become nonexistent, allowing humanity to continue at this point of desire in perpetuity. When such futures arrive into our lives, they are sometimes faulty, often underwhelming.

#GRWM:Preparing for tomorrow uses the mundane concept of a morning routine and it’s accompanying products to give a glimpse into possible futures.

Explore Further:

       GRWM: DIGITAL DATABASE

       Related Blog Posts:

           Pens of the Future: A design exercise

              Fixing the Story instead of the Design

#GRWM: Preparing for tomorrow was realized at Design Investigations, University of applied Arts Vienna. With additional guidance from Yein Lee.

AM I GABONIONTUM?

INTERACTIVE INSTALLATION - 2022

Am I Gaboniuntum? is a conversation between an Artificial Gaboniontum and a human. An AI-developed conversation that comes with potential suggestions on what life for the Gabonionta could have been like. Questioning whether we can rid ourselves of modern preconceptions and gain an understanding for Proterozoic Life? Am I Gaboniuntum? invites the visitor to have a conversation with early life. Using a joystick and simple questions, a conversation is initiated, where the visitor chooses the theme of the conversation, and in this way gain insight into Gabonionta's life. We want the viewer to leave with curiosity and spark their creativity when it comes to thinking about early life. Am I Gaboniuntum? desires to make the Gabonionta come alive for the visitor, with the descriptive conversation and supported by AI-generated visuals.

Explore Further:

Am I Gaboniontum? is exhibited at the Natural History Musem Vienna, Geology Department

Am I Gaboniontum? is featured in this Dezeen Article on Design Investigations

Am I Gaboniontum? was produced together with Sophie Hausmann, Emilie Dyrlov Madsen and Florian Sapp at Design Investigations, University of applied Arts together with the Natural History Museum of Vienna.

DONAUKANAL: COLLECTIVELY NARRATED

PUBLIC SPACE / EVENT - 2022

Human interaction has come down to a minimum in this new world of rushing coats, hurrying boots, and covered faces. In the modern metropolis, public space is for commuting, getting you from here to there as streamlined as possible. Where it isn't, relaxation is planned, mandated, and structured.

Ownership is oblivious.
Care not given.
Lines are blurred.

We rarely talk to people we don't know. We all are stuck in our worlds. Bursting the proverbial bubble is no small task. Directly taking on the ever-growing isolation would be bold and arguably naive, so we start smaller and try and talk to people— seemingly simple.

The event '_____, Collectively Narrated' aims to facilitate random interactions again by offering a community and space-focused event. It allows passersby to partake in the building of objects. We aren't building the object to complete public space; we want to involve people and hear what they say. Talking to people and recording their stories and thoughts on a space gives a representative core sample of the area.
Their stories are then displayed on the respective objects, allowing people to understand the objects and gain a deeper understanding of space and the people that inhabit it.

Donaukanal:Collectively Narrated happened in collaboration with Shannon McLachlan, Miriam Daxl and Stephan Sinn at Design Investigations, University of applied Arts Vienna

KI_
TCHEN

EVENT - 2021

Artificial Intelligence has an enormous amount of human input behind it. Data sets have to be defined, compiled, made understandable. The algorithms have to be written. Computers have to be built. Time and a lot of energy flows into a system exclusively only designed for one specific task. This begs the question, at what point is it even worth to train an AI versus just teaching another human the task at hand.

We trained a multiple models of GPT-2 on cookie and cocktail recipes. Generating new recipes at different dataset sizes and stages of training and then serving them at an event allows the visitor to directly taste the level of human input and judge for themselves, if they would like an AI Bartender.

Disclaimer: This project is based on GPT-2, a by now outdated large language model. One can speculate that by now humanity has breached the point where language models have to be trained for a specific purpose, potentially annulling the question of human input time.

KI_tchen was realized together with Mia Tesic and Eszter Zwickl at Desgin Investigations, University of applied Arts Vienna

CASH FROM CRISIS

SHORT FILM - 2021

Crises always affect people‘s worries and needs, making them more susceptible to comforting claims, hoax products and lies. Energized water, placebo pills and DVDs with 60 minutes of a healing gaze are just a few examples showing how creative some “inventors” become to earn the extra dollar. As with many products that are promising the supernatural. An easy pseudoscientific alternative is offered in parallel to a scientific — but maybe uncomfortable — solution. These machinations boom during a crisis.

Based on our observations, we set out and created a fictional venture in the field of pseudoscience. How do you make such a convincing alternative, how much function is too much, what are matters of belief, and perhaps most important how does one end up creating these systems? Mainly focusing on the user interaction and the associated effects on the body – we developed our very own fake health tool. A light-brush. We then incorporated the product and our results into a short film.

Cash from Crisis was done together with Leo Mühlfeld and Valentina Sturn at Design Investigations, University of Applied Arts Vienna, Austria.