AI Seems to be a Verb

BACKGROUND The now ubiquitous presence of automated reading and writing tools (such as auto-correct and -complete, grammar assistance, text prompts, and conversational agents using speech recognition and synthesis) all contribute to what has been described by McLuhan and others as a ‘post-literate society’ (McLuhan, 1964; Groys, 2012). Technologies such as A.I. are now part of larger human-nonhuman processes that have the potential to shape the world they were originally tasked to merely observe and categorize (Braidotti, 2013). This research uses a custom-made autonomous-art-system to look critically at postdigital literature within a ‘post-literate’ society. CONTRIBUTION In an attempt to render visible some of the embedded processes (and potential biases) of A.I. technologies, this custom-coded net artwork generates a constantly evolving page-design based on any spoken word &/or written text; based on algorithmic parsing of the text for salience, semantic function and sentiment. The artwork cycles through recombinations of any text by ‘illuminating’ the language through a system of original paratextual designs (typography and symbols), marking up and disrupting its semantic and sentiment ‘reading’. Designed by Simionato and coded by Donnachie, the artwork embraces the entropy and slippage of language and leverages the uncanny effect of machine-learning and A.I. systems on human-human and human-nonhuman communication. SIGNIFICANCE MIT CAST commissioned "This Indignant Page"—a text-driven version of this work via competitive review process, for its exhibition “Generative Unfoldings” (2021) & the work is now permanently archived in the MIT repositories; AI seems to be a verb was exhibited at the peak conference of E-Literature, ELO 2021, via a competitive 3 step jury review process (“Posthuman Literature”, Lydgalleriet, Bergen, NO, 2021); & performed in various venues included the curated “Baby Castles” Gallery, NY (broadcast via their twitch channel).