An artwork created by an AI-powered humanoid robot has sold for a record $1.08 million at a Sotheby's auction in New York. The painting, a 2.2-metre (7.5-foot) portrait of British computer scientist Alan Turing, surpassed its pre-auction estimate of $120,000-$180,000. It attracted 27 bids before being sold to an anonymous buyer.
The artwork named “AI God: Portrait of Alan Turing,” was created by Ai-Da, a humanoid robot artist developed by Aidan Meller. Ai-Da uses AI algorithms and a robotic arm to create paintings, sculptures, and other forms of art.
The painting's subject, Alan Turing, was a computer scientist who helped decrypt German codes during World War II but tragically died by suicide after facing persecution for his homosexuality. Meller hopes Ai-Da's work will spark reflection on the future of AI and its impact on humanity.
How Ai-Da created this artwork
Ai-Da, the humanoid robot artist, was brought to life in 2019 through a collaboration between Meller and a robotics company in Cornwall, UK.
In a statement to CNN, Meller said that before starting a project, Ai-Da engages in discussions with its creators, expressing its preferences and ideas for the piece it wants to create.
“In this instance, we had a discussion with her about ‘A.I. for good’ which led to Ai-Da bringing up Alan Turing as a key person in the history of A.I. that she wanted to paint,” Meller noted.
Ai-Da's creation of the Alan Turing portrait involved a multi-stage process combining AI, robotics, and artistic decision-making. After discussing the painting's style and concept with its creators, Ai-Da used its camera eyes to analyze a photo of Turing and generate preliminary sketches.
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