Monsters from the id
New Zealand Listener|June 24-30 2023
The technology is here to make our lives easier, but the old prejudices are emerging in turbo-charged form
SALLY BLUNDELL
Monsters from the id

In Emily Perkins' play The Made, Alice, a 40-year-old AI engineer and sole parent, negotiates the uncharted waters of robot emotions. She has Nanny Ann, a frumpy, middle-aged humanoid bot charged with childcare and housework.

And she has Arie, a new robot built on the chassis of a former sexbot. When Alice tries to infuse her robots with emotion, Nanny Ann gains the full gamut of emotional autonomy. As Perkins says, "She has a lot of fury."

But Arie's sexbot programming limits her emotional capacity to an unflagging happiness.

Premiered by the Auckland Theatre Company last year, The Made is funny, warm-hearted and chaotic, but it also casts a hard light on the stereotypes that shape the artificial intelligence industry.

"I wanted to consider why we have not necessarily a lack of imagination, but a narrow band of imagination when it comes to what we are making AI look like and sound like and do," says Perkins. "Falling into those stereotypes is a huge problem."

Australian journalist Tracey Spicer, NSW Premier's 2019 Woman of the Year for her work in the #MeToo movement and a recipient of an Order of Australia gong, was blindsided by that problem, too. In 2016, her then 11-year-old son announced he wanted a robot slave. It was 7.45am and her son had just seen South Park's "toon hoon" Cartman bully and harass home robot Amazon Alexa.

So began Spicer's seven-year investigation into the gender, racial, age-based and sexual biases shaping the development and use of artificial intelligence.

As she says from her home in Sydney, "It is like when you see something and the scales fall from your eyes and you can't stop seeing it everywhere around you."

Diese Geschichte stammt aus der June 24-30 2023-Ausgabe von New Zealand Listener.

Starten Sie Ihre 7-tägige kostenlose Testversion von Magzter GOLD, um auf Tausende kuratierte Premium-Storys sowie über 8.000 Zeitschriften und Zeitungen zuzugreifen.

Diese Geschichte stammt aus der June 24-30 2023-Ausgabe von New Zealand Listener.

Starten Sie Ihre 7-tägige kostenlose Testversion von Magzter GOLD, um auf Tausende kuratierte Premium-Storys sowie über 8.000 Zeitschriften und Zeitungen zuzugreifen.

WEITERE ARTIKEL AUS NEW ZEALAND LISTENERAlle anzeigen
First-world problem
New Zealand Listener

First-world problem

Harrowing tales of migrants attempting to enter the US highlight the political failure to fully tackle the problem.

time-read
3 Minuten  |
September 9, 2024
Applying intelligence to AI
New Zealand Listener

Applying intelligence to AI

I call it the 'Terminator Effect', based on the premise that thinking machines took over the world.

time-read
2 Minuten  |
September 9, 2024
Nazism rears its head
New Zealand Listener

Nazism rears its head

Smirky Höcke, with his penchant for waving with a suspiciously straight elbow and an open palm, won't get to be boss of either state.

time-read
2 Minuten  |
September 9, 2024
Staying ahead of the game
New Zealand Listener

Staying ahead of the game

Will the brave new world of bipartisanship that seems to be on offer with an Infrastructure Commission come to fruition?

time-read
4 Minuten  |
September 9, 2024
Grasping the nettle
New Zealand Listener

Grasping the nettle

Broccoli is horrible. It smells, when being cooked, like cat pee.

time-read
3 Minuten  |
September 9, 2024
Hangry? Eat breakfast
New Zealand Listener

Hangry? Eat breakfast

People who don't break their fast first thing in the morning report the least life satisfaction.

time-read
3 Minuten  |
September 9, 2024
Chemical reaction
New Zealand Listener

Chemical reaction

Nitrates in processed meats are well known to cause harm, but consumed from plant sources, their effect is quite different.

time-read
4 Minuten  |
September 9, 2024
Me and my guitar
New Zealand Listener

Me and my guitar

Australian guitarist Karin Schaupp sticks to the familiar for her Dunedin concerts.

time-read
2 Minuten  |
September 9, 2024
Time is on my side
New Zealand Listener

Time is on my side

Age does not weary some of our much-loved musicians but what keeps them on the road?

time-read
7 Minuten  |
September 9, 2024
The kids are not alright
New Zealand Listener

The kids are not alright

Nuanced account details how China's blessed generation has been replaced by one consumed by fear and hopelessness.

time-read
4 Minuten  |
September 9, 2024