Prize for media art

Falsely “trained” AI and the search for energy

A computer game demonstrates the extent to which AI in self-driving cars can recognize people - or not, if they disguise themselves in traffic.(Bild: Luke O’Donovan)

The renowned Ars Electronica media festival will take place in Linz from September 4 to 8. In addition to award-winning works from the Prix Ars Electronica, the festival will also present winners of the "Starts Prize", which is awarded by the European Commission. Energy, artificial intelligence and climate change are the top themes here.

There were 1308 submissions from 81 countries for the European Commission's Starts Prize, which is organized by the Ars Electronica Center in Linz.

The Grand Prize for Innovative Collaboration goes to a project that promotes collaboration between art and research at the European Organization for Nuclear Research (CERN). The Grand Prize for Artistic Research goes to a visual installation that depicts the entanglements of power, technology and capitalism over the past 500 years.

When cars think - and drive themselves
One of the awards goes to the game installation "How (not) to get hit by a self-driving car".

CERN, which is partly located in Switzerland, conducts basic research in physics, in particular research into the structure of matter with the help of large particle accelerators.(Bild: Marina Cavazza. Courtesy CERN)

Game installation: How do you fool the AI of a self-driving car?(Bild: Luke O’Donovan)

Postcity is the center again
The two artists Tomo Kihara (JP) and Daniel Coppen (GB) want to use the example of self-driving cars to raise awareness of how training data influences the output of AI systems. They have developed a game for this purpose: The players have to camouflage and hide on a practice road. If they are not identified as human by the self-driving truck, they have won the game - in reality, however, this would have disastrous consequences.

The projects will be presented as part of the Ars Electronica Festival, which is once again taking place in Postcity near Linz Central Station this year - we have reported on it.