A digital painting of renowned World War II codebreaker Alan Turing, created by an AI robot, has fetched a record-breaking $1.3 million (£1 million) at auction. The artwork, titled A.I. God, received 27 bids at Sotheby’s, far surpassing its initial estimate of $120,000 (£92,500) to $180,000 (£139,000).
Alan Turing, widely considered the father of artificial intelligence and a key figure in the development of computer science, was honored in this unique piece. Sotheby’s called the sale a historic moment, marking a new era in the global art market by setting the first-ever auction benchmark for art created by a humanoid robot.
Ai-Da Robot, the world’s first humanoid robot artist, has made history as the first robot to have a piece of artwork sold at auction. The artwork in question is a large-scale, original portrait of Alan Turing, the British mathematician who studied at King’s College, Cambridge.
Turing is widely recognized for his pivotal contributions to the Allied victory in World War II, where he played a key role in breaking the German Enigma code at Bletchley Park. In addition to his wartime work, Turing also designed a blueprint for the modern digital computer after the war.
The online auction, hosted by Sotheby’s, concluded at 19:00 GMT on Thursday, with the portrait selling for a price that far exceeded its estimated value. The buyer’s identity has not been revealed.
The auction house described the sale of Ai-Da Robot’s artwork as a historic moment in both modern and contemporary art, highlighting the growing connection between artificial intelligence and the global art market.
Ai-Da, who uses a sophisticated A.I. language model to communicate, explained that the true value of her art lies in its ability to spark conversation about emerging technologies.
According to Ai-Da, the artwork encourages viewers to contemplate the almost god-like nature of A.I. and computing, while also prompting reflection on the ethical and societal implications of these technological advances.
The robot further noted that Alan Turing, who foresaw the potential of such technology, appears to “stare at us” in the portrait, as humanity moves rapidly toward this future.
Aidan Meller, director of Ai-Da Robot Studios, called the auction a significant milestone for the visual arts, emphasizing how Ai-Da’s artwork draws attention to the evolving art world and the societal shifts taking place as we enter the era of A.I.
He also highlighted that the piece, titled AI God, raises important questions about agency and the increasing power of artificial intelligence.