Artificial Intelligence as an Expressive Tool: Samin Winiger

At Dentsu Lab Tokyo, we call people who express themselves using technology "Creative Technologists." In this series, we interview Creative Technologists worldwide about their work and creations, exploring what new forms of expression emerge from technology.

 

Sammin Winiger: Pursuing Artificial Intelligence as a Tool for Expression

For the fourth installment of this series, we interviewed Samin Winiger, who has unveiled innovative projects using artificial intelligence. Originally from Switzerland, he started as a dance music producer. Dance music might seem worlds apart from artificial intelligence. However, he formed a team with several colleagues specifically to apply AI to the creative domain. He has released numerous projects incorporating AI, each showcasing its potential.
This time, we explore the potential of using AI technology as a tool for creativity and expression.

(The interview was conducted online via messaging.)

*Artificial intelligence refers to programs designed to replicate human intellectual activities. The AI frequently discussed in media today employs a technique called "machine learning." By feeding vast amounts of data to the AI, it learns the characteristics within that data and attempts to mimic human intellectual activities.

 

Using Artificial Intelligence in the Creative Field

Kida: Thank you for agreeing to this interview.
Getting right to it, when we think of artificial intelligence, images like automatic language translation or self-driving cars come to mind. Amidst this, you formed a team called "Creative.AI," composed of several experts, to apply artificial intelligence to the creative field. First, please tell us about this team.

Samin: We consider our team a "computer algorithm-driven creative agency" and define our mission as "democratizing creativity." We want to transform the creative industry so it can better leverage its own strengths by utilizing AI insights.
We constantly conduct research and share insights to make it easier to create new things, whether by using AI to automatically generate content or by assisting in new creative processes. Our team members come from diverse backgrounds, including designers, artists, engineers, and AI researchers.

Kida: Why did you specifically decide to provide AI insights to the creative field?

Samin: In recent years, there has been a surge in research using AI to enter the creative domain. Examples include AI that paints, writes stories, composes music, designs, and even plans houses. Research that was once confined to closed laboratories is now breaking out and flowing rapidly into industry.

You could say we're witnessing a transformative era comparable to the invention of movable type printing. While opportunities are expanding, industries involved in creative fields are still grappling with how to effectively utilize this technology. It's not easy to grasp the latest research trends in complex technology and assemble personnel who can properly handle AI. That's why we thought we could serve as a bridge.

Kida: I see. Then, allow me to introduce a few of our recent AI-related projects.

 

" Generating Stories About Images"
We built an AI using "lyrics" and "romance novels" as training data. We input images into this AI and have it describe the image's content. Unlike typical AI construction, we fed it "biased" training data, resulting in image descriptions humans wouldn't conceive. For this photo, we showed the image to an AI trained on Taylor Swift's lyrics and had it generate a description. For this painting, it produced the following: "In this night sky, you must be the only light bulb, I thought, ah, it's so dark, I really miss you."

 

“Desire”
Produced as a music video for the electronic band "Years & Years". Utilizing Google's "Deep Dream" algorithm released in 2015, they developed a custom tool for video production and completed it as a music video.

 

Kida: Artificial intelligence is being used in various fields. What kind of people would you like to work with?

Samin: I want to work with people in design, advertising, music, games, film, and fashion. We want to help people in these fields quickly develop concepts and explore creative uses for artificial intelligence. To do this, we consistently share the various experiments we conduct and the latest trends in AI.

 

Unraveling Human Intelligence Through Artificial Intelligence

Kida: By the way, is it possible to have artificial intelligence express its own opinions? Ultimately, does it depend on the input?

Samin: Research on the brain by various scientists shows how much our human opinions and will are influenced by others. For example, your opinions on fashion are shaped by the people around you, advertising, and culture. "Opinions," "choices," and "will" aren't actually solely our own; they're formed by numerous external influences.

If an AI has a "personality," it would largely depend on its developers. What algorithms were used, and what kind of training was applied. To answer your question, it is possible, and it would depend on the input.

Kida: What motivates you to create various things using technology?

Samin: I'm not interested in technology itself. I'm fascinated by creating things, and technology is just a tool to do that quickly.

Kida: I've learned a lot. Thank you for today!

 

[After the Interview]
Using cutting-edge technology as a tool for expression

When people hear "artificial intelligence," they might think of cutting-edge technology that individuals can't easily handle. And the idea of using AI for something creative might sound downright daunting.
While researching AI trends, encountering his work and research was what led me to discover him. Until then, my impression of AI was that it aimed to replace tasks humans found tedious, like automatic language translation or self-driving cars. Seeing what he was trying to do changed that perspective.

What he's doing is asking the same question that has been asked of other technologies before: How can we use artificial intelligence as a tool for expression? For example, when the technology of "photography" was invented, people used it to gain a new means of expression. After acquiring the technology of "film," it became known among people as the medium of cinema. This interview makes me think that the same might be true for artificial intelligence.

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