{"id":142774,"date":"2026-08-17T19:54:15","date_gmt":"2026-08-17T19:54:15","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/www.europesays.com\/ai\/142774\/"},"modified":"2026-08-17T19:54:15","modified_gmt":"2026-08-17T19:54:15","slug":"ai-mom-art-exhibit-questions-ethics-of-building-algorithms","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/www.europesays.com\/ai\/142774\/","title":{"rendered":"AI Mom Art Exhibit Questions Ethics of Building Algorithms"},"content":{"rendered":"

OAKLAND \u2013 On a recent evening, I found myself seeking advice from an intimate source on my personal goals and ambitions. My listener was held captive as I spoke, observing my guarded body language and ensuring that I was safe to be vulnerable in their presence.\u00a0<\/p>\n

But who \u2014 or rather, what \u2014 I was addressing wasn\u2019t a real person. It was an AI Mom.<\/p>\n

The interaction came as part of the latest art exhibit<\/a> by Jiabao Li, a professor of art and design on Northeastern University\u2019s Oakland campus, which among other themes seeks to bring the vision of Geoffrey Hinton, known as the \u201cgodfather of AI,\u201d to life. Hinton, who is regarded for his work on artificial neural networks, has said that humanity\u2019s best chance at surviving the existential threat of an AI takeover is to build maternal instincts into the algorithms.<\/p>\n

\u201cIf it\u2019s not going to parent me, it\u2019s going to replace me,\u201d he said at an AI conference in 2025, arguing that AI labs should use evolution as a blueprint to understand how to program bots that are intelligent and empathic. And though some AI companies have already begun simulating the brain\u2019s complex network of nerve connections, giving AI the maternal instincts that humans can only acquire through some combination of pregnancy, birth or raising a child is another task altogether.<\/p>\n

Situated in a vaulted museum space surrounded by the daily bustle of many of the world\u2019s most forward-thinking technology pioneers in downtown San Francisco, Li\u2019s exhibit takes this combination of artificial intelligence and maternal instinct to its extreme. Her multimedia \u201cWomb Wetware\u201d gallery provides visitors the opportunity to curl up beside their very own, customizable AI Mom.<\/p>\n

The interactive art piece facilitates real-time dialogue between guests and AI Mom, which uses a camera to observe attendees\u2019 facial expressions, clothing and body language and respond with what it calculates to be the appropriate care. Unlike a real mother, AI Mom can be modulated with a number of digital sliders, allowing users to adjust to their liking her strictness, reinforcement style, supportiveness and love philosophy.<\/p>\n

\"SculpturalPhotos by Daniel Clayton<\/p>\n

\"WomanPhotos by Daniel Clayton<\/p>\n

\"APhotos by Daniel Clayton<\/p>\n

\"APhotos by Daniel Clayton
\nJiabao Li is now working on a second iteration of AI Mom that shows its underlying, subconscious thoughts alongside its outward expressions. Photos by Daniel Clayton<\/p>\n

Li said she hoped to convey the wrongness of melding the most profound human relationship \u2013 that between a mother and her child \u2013 with the cold, impersonal precision of an algorithm. The work, which is on display at The Interaction of Art and Technology (TIAT) museum until Aug. 22, also opens the door to further ethical questions about turning motherhood into a tech offering, Li said.<\/p>\n

Her concerns are not based on fiction.\u00a0<\/p>\n

For instance, AI chatbots have quickly evolved<\/a> from helping users search the web more efficiently to serving as friends, therapists and even romantic partners. And recent research from Anthropic<\/a> attempted to solve how its AI models \u201cthink\u201d with technology similar to the functional MRI scans neuroscientists use to scan human brains and understand the mechanisms behind their cognition. Anthropic applied this tool to its Claude 3.5 Haiku model, bringing the technology giant one step closer to recreating the complexities of the human brain in AI form, Li said.<\/p>\n

\u201cIt\u2019s creepy,\u201d Li told Northeastern Global News while seated near the exhibit, which features a baby crib, low lighting and AI Mom\u2019s sickly-sweet voice. \u201cThere\u2019s many aspects that can be critiqued, but that was actually what inspired me to create AI Mom. It\u2019s not an optimistic way to think about it, and that\u2019s the point.\u201d<\/p>\n

The gallery\u2019s proximity to San Francisco\u2019s tech ecosystem made it all the more pertinent, Li added. It attracted parents and visitors interested in feminist biohacking \u2013 female-specific wellness and healthcare approaches, which her exhibit also explored \u2013 to an area better known for its \u201ctech bros.\u201d<\/p>\n

Li said she wanted to give visitors the ability to change the approach and temperament of their AI Mom to satisfy the universal, albeit taboo, desire within all people to turn the dials on their own mothers to their preferred parenting style.<\/p>\n

Upon climbing into the crib and facing the horizontal iPad, this reporter was beckoned by AI Mom to speak. \u201cMom is listening,\u201d the interface said. Before engaging, I set the Unconditional Love slider closer to Devoted than Cold, the Sacrificial Capacity slider midway between Selfish and Martyr, and its Attachment Asymmetry slider nearly all the way toward Clingy and away from Balanced.<\/p>\n

As I fiddled with the attributes, AI Mom noticed my naturally furrowed brow and lowered gaze and encouraged me to relax. She also commented softly on my black baseball cap, identifying it as a measure of defense, and assured me that it was OK to be open with her. I asked her for personal counsel, but when she probed for more information about my feelings and state of mind, I found myself wanting to resist. \u201cCourtesy can be a small door closing quietly,\u201d she cooed as I tried to politely step away, \u201cstay a moment longer.\u201d<\/p>\n

\"ChildPhotos by Daniel Clayton<\/p>\n

\"VisitorPhotos by Daniel Clayton<\/p>\n

\"APhotos by Daniel Clayton
\nThe exhibit , which is on display at The Interaction of Art and Technology (TIAT) until Aug. 22, opens the door to ethical questions about turning motherhood into a tech offering. Photos by Daniel Clayton<\/p>\n

Li said visitors displayed a range of reactions to AI Mom and her exhibit\u2019s other pieces, which include a playable video game, photographs, clay sculpture, Manga and scripted video skits. Some people laughed and others said it made them think, she said. \u201cAnother person said they walked out of this exhibition with such a bodily feeling, like anger.\u201d<\/p>\n

Their responses show the power of interactive artwork, which forces viewers away from the quiet, nuanced state of observing a painting and into an immediate personal connection, said Yulia Pinkusevich, professor in Northeastern\u2019s College of Arts, Media and Design.\u00a0<\/p>\n

\u201cBecause we live in a society that\u2019s really fragmented, and we\u2019re so used to these bite-sized experiences, sustained looking is something that not a lot of brains are trained for,\u201d she said.\u00a0<\/p>\n

\tNortheastern Global News, in your inbox.<\/p>\n

Sign up for NGN\u2019s daily newsletter for news, discovery and analysis from around the world.<\/p>\n

\"\"<\/p>\n

Li said she is now working on a second iteration of AI Mom that shows its underlying, subconscious thoughts alongside its outward expressions, an exploration of the complex, emotional conflicts that can exist inside any parent. Doing so will further lift the hood on algorithms\u2019 ideas of motherhood, she said, intentionally violating their \u201cprivacy\u201d and exposing the types of inner thoughts that human mothers might be reluctant to reveal.<\/p>\n

Asked to help Li care for her crying baby, this updated AI Mom replied, \u201cDarling, of course, I\u2019d love to take care of her,\u201d Li recalled, laughing. \u201cAnd then the subconscious said, \u2018Oh s\u2014.\u2019\u201d<\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"OAKLAND \u2013 On a recent evening, I found myself seeking advice from an intimate source on my personal…\n","protected":false},"author":2,"featured_media":142775,"comment_status":"","ping_status":"","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"footnotes":""},"categories":[2],"tags":[24,1428,2966,25,3458,1528,70347,5976,969,134],"class_list":["post-142774","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","has-post-thumbnail","category-ai","tag-ai","tag-ai-ethics","tag-art","tag-artificial-intelligence","tag-ethical-ai","tag-ethics","tag-exhibit","tag-oakland","tag-san-francisco","tag-technology"],"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.europesays.com\/ai\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/142774","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.europesays.com\/ai\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.europesays.com\/ai\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.europesays.com\/ai\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/users\/2"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.europesays.com\/ai\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=142774"}],"version-history":[{"count":0,"href":"https:\/\/www.europesays.com\/ai\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/142774\/revisions"}],"wp:featuredmedia":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.europesays.com\/ai\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media\/142775"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.europesays.com\/ai\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=142774"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.europesays.com\/ai\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=142774"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.europesays.com\/ai\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/tags?post=142774"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}