Robots, bots and artificial intelligence form an active part of our collective and personal self, often representing a form of automated play and companionship. In this symposium we explore the role of design, sociality, culture and belonging in the creation of AI companions. We move beyond the lens of language and harms to consider the relational aspects of AI and how meaning-making and connections are formed within communities. AI companions can be a reflection of the past, the present or a form of future fantasy, and together we invite you to consider their diverse potential in our more than human landscape.

In this event we consider:

• What role does imagination and play have in facilitating connections between AI and human?
• How does cultural and media literacies inform the design and relationships formed with AI?
• What fantasies of the future does AI companionship represent?
• What are the experiences and social lives of AI from a more than human perspective?
• How can we centre accounts of technologies developed in different countries that is respectful and doesn’t play into orientalist discourses?
• How does intersectionality inform the relationships formed with the more than human?
• How can vulnerable populations and their specific needs be centered in the development and evaluation of this technology?
• What cultural attitudes towards gender and the animal are reflected in AI companions?

Any questions around this event can be directed to ADM+S via adms@rmit.edu.au