For this round of Visualising AI, we reached out to eight artists from around the world and asked if they would be interested in working with us on the next iteration of the project. We asked each artist to work on one or two topics around AI, and for each we requested a 15 second animation and four or more static images in 16:9 and 9:16.

Our objectives for this project were to redefine the visual representations of AI to encourage inclusivity, help discuss accurate potentials and risks of the technology, redefine dystopian tropes, and overall shift perceptions of artificial intelligence.

We wanted to do this by engaging the creative community who have a significant influence on how audiences understand and consume information and help set culture and trends around technologies.

AI is a hard thing to communicate and the current conversation requires a level of fluency across many complex ideas. Gaining said fluency requires improving the concept of AI literacy, but where do you start with such a technical subject?

A big part of how we can help communicate AI is through our ability to translate and tell stories.

If a picture is worth a thousand words then we can use visuals to be a more accessible entry point to the conversation on AI. Research shows that many people still think of AI as robots or sci-fi style imaginations rather than the complex, diverse technologies that they actually are.

In order to counter these misrepresentations we need widely accessible visuals that radically alter our imaginations of AI and it’s from this thought that Vis AI was born.

Artist & Topic Selection: We identify trending AI themes and diverse artists (demographics, styles) to ensure a representative collection.

AI Education: Artists receive AI 101 sessions and loose creative direction aligned with Google's AI principles.

Collaboration: Artists engage in deep-dive discussions with AI experts for nuanced understanding of the topics.

Creative Freedom: Artists are paid. They independently develop concepts, mood boards, and final works, reflecting their unique interpretations. The curatorial approach to the project means we do not give feedback on the output. Each creation is a true representation of the artist's understanding and visualisation of the topic.

Placement: A key part of this project is open sourcing the art on an unrestricted creative commons licence. It's then released via Unsplash and Pexels, two of the largest free stock image and video repositories to get everything into the world. We release mini documentaries about each artists’ journey in creating their work, and use the imagery at live events.

Scale: VisAI has received over 300M views across our Unsplash and Pexels libraries and millions of downloads via their APIs. It has been used by publications, institutions and brands, including The Economist, Yahoo, Fast Company, and more. The work was also exihibited at London's biggest outdoor art gallery between Jan - April 2024.

Design: Each piece is developed in the artist's own style and each was selected to be part of the project for their style. As we’re shortlisting artists, we’re keeping the topics and themes in the back of our mind and starting to connect artists and their style and experience with specific themes.

Methods: Visualising a technology with no corporeal form meant that we prioritised using 3D designers specifically to develop imagery and animations. Artists also explored technologies such as motion capture to integrate a more human element through movement.