AI Communicating with Aliens... Let's Experience It Through Art!

UNIST Startup CoreDotToday to Exhibit at Ulsan Gallery P1 from April 22 to May 8

Third 'Technology × Art Collaboration' Project ... Collaboration with Artist UnhappyCircuit

An art exhibition poster showing an artificial intelligence (AI) communicating with aliens by the artist of 'Unhappy Circuit'.

[Asia Economy Yeongnam Reporting Headquarters Reporter Dongguk Lee] An art exhibition showcasing artificial intelligence (AI) that communicates with aliens will be held in Ulsan.

The work is "Artificial Intelligence for Interstellar Diplomacy" by the artist Unhappy Circuit.

UNIST faculty startup company Core.today will unveil the "Technology × Art Collaboration" project at Gallery P1 (Dalbit-ro, Jung-gu) in Ulsan starting on the 22nd. This exhibition, running until May 8, is the third project in the "Technology × Art Collaboration" series.

This work assumes a scenario where an extraterrestrial intelligence located at an astronomical distance from Earth is discovered, and communication is established via radio waves. The AI algorithm, trained in Korean and English, acts as a kind of diplomat conveying information about Earth and humanity to the alien star.

The work is largely composed of a section explaining the principle and a section for visitors to experience.

The principle explanation is handled by a diagram drawn across one wall of the exhibition space. It is a space where visitors can clearly and at a glance understand the artist’s idea of using AI in communication with extraterrestrial intelligence.

On the opposite wall, visitors can experience the "conversational AI," allowing them to feel the perspective of an alien intelligence rather than a human from Earth. By attempting to shift the visitor’s viewpoint from Earthling to extraterrestrial intelligence, it offers an opportunity to see ourselves through a new lens.

Gallery P1 explained, "While experiencing this work, visitors gain a chance to contemplate the emotions or very existence of the alien intelligence that first speaks to the AI sent by humans," adding, "The artist paradoxically leads us to introspect ourselves by exploring unknown beings rather than humans."

The artist Unhappy Circuit and Core.today applied Facebook AI Research’s (FAIR) "BlenderBot" for the conversational AI.

BlenderBot can communicate without limiting topics, just like humans do in everyday conversations. Therefore, it provides an experience of empathizing and utilizing knowledge in conversation, as if it were a person with a unique personality.

Kim Kyunghoon, CEO of Core.today, said, "The AI used in this exhibition is a large and complex model with about 9.4 billion parameters, so equipment equipped with high-performance GPUs was utilized," and added, "We hope visitors will have a new experience meeting AI that goes beyond simple conversation to empathize, utilize knowledge, and engage in persona-based dialogue."

Core.today is a big data specialized company that processes and analyzes raw data to provide data models tailored to various purposes.

It was founded in 2016 by Professor Jang Bongsoo of the Department of Mathematical Sciences at UNIST, and currently, Dr. Kim Kyunghoon, a postdoctoral researcher who co-founded the company, serves as CEO.

In 2018, it launched "LAWBOT," a service optimized for legal precedent searches, and in 2019, it was recognized for its competitiveness by being selected as a data voucher supplier by the Ministry of Science and ICT.