True to our formula “Human + A.I. instead of A.I. - Human”, we view contemporary developments as creative opportunities. One example illustrates this: Applications such as Midjourney or Dall-E 2 generate visualizations based on text prompts within a few seconds. The results range from quite presentable to high quality. In this respect, we have decided not to give in to the fear that such applications will replace the work of graphic designers in the long term, for example. Instead, we see the tools - and this applies to text-to-image, text-to-text, text-to-audio, etc. at the same time - as creative additions to our previous work. Because as strong as the A.I.s are, they have weak points that require human supervision and therefore do not make human creatives obsolete. Hands, for example, are a challenge for text-to-image applications: normal anatomical arrangements often give way to a lumpy multitude of fingers that transport parts of images into the Uncanny Valley. So an image A.I. will not (yet?) create key visuals or architectural plans for us. However, we are opening up areas of the creative process with the help of artificial intelligence, i.e. partial elements such as mock-ups, visuals and text modules are certainly being created with it. Ultimately, all of these processes still require copywriters, designers, architects and other creative professions. The question of whether we will continue to use these tools as creative enhancements in the future or simply curate in the long term cannot yet be answered. However, what we can already say after intensive research and work on and with A.I. applications is that they enrich our creative work and open up new perspectives.

That's why we have opened the Artificial Experience Lab (AE Lab for short), an experimental area where we want to bring artificial intelligence to life. At various stations in our imprfct space, we publicly test the functionality of various applications and invite guests to become active themselves. The stations function both separately and as interfaces for each other. For example, we invite visitors to build an airicus in Midjourney and model one with plasticine. At the Paradoxon station, a text can be written about the resulting Luftikus via ChatGPT and then the matching anthem can be created at the Music mAIstro exhibit by entering text. With additional instruments and office utensils, man and machine can also make music here as a duet.

The AE Lab is still at an early stage - simultaneously with the applications that can be experienced there - and is therefore in a process of self-discovery and organization. Our aim is to turn it into a long-term project that always keeps an eye on contemporary developments and incorporates them into creative processes.