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Extended Intelligences

Reflection

In the seminar Design with Extended Intelligences, we discussed what it means to have intelligence and gained an overview of machine learning, artificial intelligence, and went through the process of mocking up a potential AI framework.

I found this seminar very interesting in giving an overview and demystifying what machine learning and artificial intelligence is. It gave me insight on how much of our daily lives are contributing to data sets that then are used to create the systems we use and live among. It is good to understand how much AI is integrated into our daily lives and the implications, ethics, and impacts it can have on our surroundings and futures. AI in the media is seen as this nebulous and robotic other world, however instead it is made up of data sets and frameworks that people establish. We have a lot of control to manipulate what information we give and how that information will be interpreted.

I enjoyed learning about the artistic approach in exposing how machine learning works as another layer to demystify AI. It helps to show how machines interpret the world versus us as humans. This helps to see the value and importance of human input, as people think that AI will continue to automate jobs and daily tasks. It also shows how there is a lot of growth and learning to be done in order for AI to be as inclusive and effective as possible.

It was important to learn about how accessible these data sets and machine learning tools are, such as Google Collab. Before this course I always thought it was necessary to have coding knowledge to manipulate or understand AI, however we were able to start playing with and experimenting with existing frameworks.

Going through the process of making our group’s “listening companion” tool was helpful to see how complicated it is to design a framework to make a product. It showed the blind spots and biases we all have, even if your intentions are good. It also showed potential ways to integrate AI into other design projects with learning about chatbots, speech recognition tools, and photo recognition.

Here is the presentation from our group about an AI listening companion:


Last update: June 14, 2023