Commissioned for Collusion 2019
Tonight you’re going to party like it’s 2030. Crowded Room’s live-action installation invites you into the futuristic home of a young Western professional, complete with a highly intelligent Virtual Assistant. You’ll engage with a story and affect its outcome – while being confronted with the potential risks and likely impact of artificial intelligence on our future.
Made in collaboration with technologists and informed by real-life conversations with young people in Cambridge, Kenya and Nepal, the piece reflects on how emergent technologies might benefit the whole of society, in line with the United Nations’ sustainable development ambitions to “leave no one behind” by 2030.
To develop 2030, Collusion supported Crowded Room through a 12-month programme of research and development, connecting them with key partners. They discussed AI narratives with Dr Kanta Dihal from Leverhulme Centre of Future Intelligence, consulted with Arm about their work in sustainable development, and workshopped the creation of a virtual assistant with the UX team from Cambridge Consultants.
Artists
Crowded Room
Led by artistic directors Mark Knightley & Harriet Madeley, Crowded Room makes and produces innovative theatre that deals with contemporary issues in new ways.
