Cosmic Brains

Cosmic Brains brought cutting edge minds working in scifi, philosophy, AI, neuroscience, the arts, and design together in a sustained interdisciplinary conversation. We focused on pivotal questions concerning AI, AGI, and ‘the alien’. Specifically, we probed whether alignment and communication with AI are feasible; delved into the boundaries of language, mathematics, and logic in AI development; explored the deep time of the evolution of human sapience, to search for parallel models that might assist us in the design of AI; tested the multi-modal, synaesthetic and embodied approach to cognition through gesture, sound and music; and we asked what it might mean to imagine and design microworlds and pocket universes- either as ‘toy worlds’ for AI, or as alternate pathways and sanctuaries, in the eventuality that alignment with AI [and ‘the alien’] proves elusive. 

The programme was structured as follows:

CRITICAL SESSIONS - ROUND TABLES

• CRITICAL SESSION #01 - Synthetic Minds, Cosmic Brains

On this first session there was an introduction to the week and themes by Ed Keller, presentations from key participants, and a roundtable discussion on their work. 

DAY 1 VIDEO

• CRITICAL SESSION #02 - Synthetic Minds, Universal Gestures: Concurrency, Embodiment, Synaesthesia

During this second session, presentations and a discussion on language took place, alongside themes such as evolutionary pressures on intelligence, gestural ecologies, soundscapes and music, and multi-modal information flow and ecosystem models of mind.

DAY 2 VIDEO

• CRITICAL SESSION #03 -  Synthetic Minds, Universal Gestures: Alignment, Microworlds and Pocket Universes

For the third critical session, temporality of computation and cognition, concepts of alignment and the concept of the microworld/pocket universe were explored.

DAY 3 VIDEO

FILM CYCLE 

As part of the Critical Studies Program, we screened two films, Ex Machina and Annihilation, highlighting the challenges we face as we design and build Synthetic Minds. In the case of Annihilation, surveyed as well the cosmological implications of ‘alignment’ between human and non-human minds and systems. 

PUBLIC SYMPOSIUM AND PERFORMANCE 

There also was a public seminar showcasing the findings of the critical sessions, and a performance by an ensemble exploring gestural capture of sound/embodiment and real time/post processing machine learning, AI tokenization of music, sound and gesture.

SIMPOSIUM VIDEO

ABOUT ED KELLER

Ed Keller’s research and practice explores the structures of feeling which link cultural, infrastructural, ecological, and technosocial systems, revealing emergent terrestrial and cosmopolitical potential. He is a designer, professor, writer, technologist and musician, and with Carla Leitão, a co-founder of Spec.AE / AUM Studio design research and architecture offices. Keller & Leitão have convened 20+ international conferences and lecture series.  Ed’s consulting and academic positions include Creative Director at SingularityNET; mentor/curator with the Madrid MediaLAB Synthetic Intelligence Lab#03;  affiliate researcher with the Antikythera program; and faculty member with The New Centre;
he has taught architecture, film and technology since 1996 at universities including The New School/Parsons, Columbia GSAPP, SCIARc, UPenn, Pratt, and FIU. 

DOWNLOAD PROGRAMME

VÍDEOS

DAY 1

DAY 2

DAY 3

SIMPOSIUM