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A humanoid robot raked in $1,084,800 for its portrait of AI pioneer Alan Turing at a Sotheby's auction this week.
The artist, if you can call it that, is named Ai-Da, an homage to computer programmer Ada Lovelace. The portrait "AI God" garnered 27 bids and was originally expected to sell for between $120,000 and $180,000 (crypto accepted), according to the auction page.]
"Ai-Da's portrayal of Turing not only honors his legacy but also explores the broader, transformative impact of technology on human identity, creativity, and agency, making her work a significant milestone in both art and AI," says Sotheby's.
Ai-Da was created by gallerist Aidan Meller in partnership with robotics company Engineered Arts and a team at Leeds University in the UK, Quintessentially reports. Meller isn't pocketing the proceeds from the sale, but instead putting them "back into the project," he tells PCMag. "We have some big innovations for Ai-Da coming next year."
Over the past few years, Ai-Da's work has been exhibited internationally, such as at the UN Global Summit on for Good in Geneva, sparking debate about what it means to be an artist.
"I draw and paint using cameras in my eyes, my AI algorithms, and my robotic arm," Ai-Da says in the video below. "My artwork encourages reflection on the relationship between humans, machines, and creativity, offering a new lens to think about art."
Each work from Ai-Da is unique and unpredictable, according to Meller, who argues the AI is creating original artwork with a camera- and vision-based method as if she is using her "eyes," brought to life with her robotic arm. This distinguishes her approach from the likes of AI art generators like OpenAI's Dall-E and Midjourney, he says, which mash up and rearrange existing artwork to the chagrin of human artists.