Sotheby’s to Auction First Artwork Made by a Humanoid Robot

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As a seasoned gamer and tech enthusiast with a soft spot for art, I must say this news about Sotheby‘s auction of Ai-Da’s artwork has piqued my interest. Having spent countless hours immersed in virtual worlds and interacting with AI characters, the concept of an autonomous robot creating art is nothing short of fascinating to me.

For over two centuries and a half, Sotheby’s has been known for making headlines by auctioning some of the world’s rarest pieces of art. On Halloween this year, the London-based company will add another achievement to its list as it auctions off what is believed to be the first artwork created by a robot.

2024’s artwork titled “A.I. God. Portrait of Alan Turing” was crafted by Ai-Da, a robot constructed by British gallery owner Aidan Meller. Dressed in a black bob wig, navy shirt, and black denim coveralls, Ai-Da leverages human inputs combined with artificial intelligence to perform various daily tasks, ranging from drawing and writing to delivering TED talks. As Meller put it, “our online worlds are intricate and influenced by forces that are often hidden or unclear. Ai-Da, the robot endowed with AI abilities, underscores these tensions: it brings into focus the complexity of our interconnected digital and physical realms and the hidden personas we can adopt within them.

The artwork created by Ai-Da, titled “A.I. God. Portrait of Alan Turing,” measures approximately 60 x 90 inches and has an impressionistic style depicting British computer scientist Alan Turing. This mixed-media piece is estimated to be worth between $120,000 and $180,000 USD. According to Sotheby’s vice president and head of digital art, Michael Bouhanna, there may not be much public data available to gauge the market for such unique works; however, after discussions with influential collectors in the fields of art and technology (specifically AI), it has been determined that interest in this piece is high. As reported by ARTnews.

Bouhanna stated that the passion and curiosity from these collectors, along with their belief in the significance of this piece within the AI art world, played a significant role in my determination to set the pre-sale value at a level commensurate with its expected appeal and market worth,” he explained.

On October 31, the digital art auction at Sotheby’s begins, featuring pieces from artists like Refik Anadol, DesLucrece, and others.

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2024-10-23 00:56