CONFIRM - Smart Manufacturing X Mika Satomi

CONFIRM - Smart Manufacturing

The project's vision is to transform and grow Irish manufacturing by integrating intelligence within products, machines, production systems and supply chains. Smart manufacturing has been defined as "the intelligent, real-time orchestration and optimisation of physical (people and equipment), digital and business processes within factories and across the entire value chain." The emergence of smart manufacturing is leading to a transformational change in all aspects of the supply chain, and is set to change how companies structure their manufacturing operations, and how they cooperate with suppliers and customers. Adopting the smart manufacturing transformation by understanding and addressing its challenges is critical for the long term competitiveness of Irish industry.

Artificial intelligence and its false lies

We tend to identify ourselves with the jobs we do. It is very common to ask “what do you do?” as a communication starter when you meet someone new. Jobs are not only something we do for living, but we define ourselves with it.

The introduction of AI in our workplaces is often discussed with a slight anxiety. Is it going to abolish our jobs? Is it going to replace me in my work? Even though with the promise of shorter work hours and eliminating manual labor that nobody wants to do, with all the sustainability and economic benefits, we feel uneasy to accept giving up our labor to AI.

“Artificial Intelligence and its False Lies” is a series of workwear/ uniform that are equipped with AI that make decisions for wearers in work situations. Sensors on the uniform detects how you move and feedback to the system so it can further make decisions accordingly. The human wearer become an executor, a body for AI.

We can experiment how it feels to live with AI, how it feels to work with AI, how the decision making system of AI impact how you do things, how you incorporate and adjust.

Mika Satomi

Mika Satomi is a designer and an artist exploring the field of eTextiles, Interaction Design and Physical Computing. She has been a guest professor at the Weissensee Art Academy Berlin for five semesters. She has worked as a researcher at the Swedish School of Textiles and at the Distance Lab, Scotland in the field of practice based design research. She holds BA in graphic design from Tokyo Zokei University, and MA in media creation from IAMAS, Japan. Since 2006 Mika has collaborated with Hannah Perner- Wilson, forming the collective KOBAKANT creating artistic projects in the field of eTextiles and Wearable Technology Art. She is a coauthor of the e-Textile online database “How To Get What You Want”.

http://www.kobakant.at/

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Will AI replace our jobs? Will AI threat our identity? Are these problems a result of AI? These were some of the questions moving the artist Mika Satomi in the residency “Artificial Intelligence and its False Lies (AIFalseLies)”. In this residency, she worked with the project CONFIRM, a research project focused on smart manufacturing, aiming to develop methods for automated decision systems. Together, they have discussed about the role of technology in our lives and, specifically, its impact on our jobs. Instead of observing fearfully from a distance, Mika Satomi proposes us to reflect on these questions by challenging us to get closer to the machine’s world. If we could wear AI, would it influence how we do things? The resulting artwork consists of a series of embroidered Artificial Neural Network prototypes, accompanied by a short film that captured the ideas discussed during the residency. The final prototype, a whole-body garment, was shaped as a ghost, built to allow us to become a body of a machine that learn from us and continue “dreaming” about us in our absence.

Artificial Intelligence and Its False Lies at CENTQUATRE-Paris during the STARTS Residencies Days 2020 @ Quentin Chevrier

AIFalseLies was a good opportunity for willing members of the research group to take time to reflect on the place of their work in a broader context, what was perceived as being important for them, as this type of conversations are sparse. By producing the interview film, the residency also allowed them to recognise their common interests and approach to computer science and artificial intelligence in general, while putting into light their diverse opinions on broader topics. The process of formulating ideas and listening to ideas coming from their peers was a great opportunity for them to think critically about their research work in a broader societal and maybe political context. Through this residency, CONFIRM was also stimulated to explore new concepts and methods, namely the idea of learning movements and habits of workers. The possibility to develop and implement new ways of engaging the public with their work is also perceived as being relevant to them. Thanks to AIFalseLies, the Confirm research group enhanced their recognition of an artistic critical view and are discussing the creation of a program to stimulate regular collaboration with artists, including Mika Satomi.

Interview with Mika Satomi at CENTQUATRE-Paris, during the STARTS Residencies Days 2020

From the perspective of Mika Satomi, the residency allowed her to step into a new topic and technique of AI. The experience of learning how ANN and machine learning works opened up new possibilities for her to explore more deeply and fluently this much-discussed topic of AI. AIFalseLies was the first of a series of works that she intends to conduct concerning AI and its role in society. Due to the collaboration with CONFIRM, she was able to identify many artistic possibilities to be explored behind the AI algorithms.

Residency final video

Read the final report Discover more on the blog