Portrait by humanoid robot to sell at auction in art world first

The robot artist Ai-Da, a humanoid powered by artificial intelligence, will be the first of its kind to have a painting sold at a major auction house, organizers said Wednesday.

The work, due to go under the hammer at Sotheby’s in London next month, is described as a “haunting” portrait of the English mathematician Alan Turing, considered one of the fathers of modern computing.

Entitled “AI God”, the 7.5 ft (2.2 meter) high portrait is expected to fetch between $130,000 and $196,000.

The online sale, featuring a range of digital art forms, would explore the intersection between art and technology, according to Sotheby’s.

The ultra-realistic robot is designed to resemble a human female with a face, large eyes and a brown wig and is one of the most advanced in the world.

It works by using AI algorithms and has cameras in its eyes and bionic hands.

Aidan Meller, gallery owner and founder of Ai-Da Robot studio, led the team that created it with artificial intelligence specialists at the universities of Oxford and Birmingham in England.

Meller said Turing, who made his name as a World War II codebreaker, mathematician and early computer scientist, had raised concerns about the use of AI in the 1950s.

The artwork’s “muted tones and broken facial planes” seemingly suggested “the struggles Turing warned we will face when it comes to managing AI”, he said.

Ai-Da’s works were “ethereal and haunting” and “continue to question where the power of AI will take us, and the global race to harness its power”, he added.

In 2022, Ai-Da painted portraits of the acts headlining Glastonbury Festival including Billie Eilish, Diana Ross, Kendrick Lamar and Paul McCartney.

Sotheby’s Digital Art Sale runs from October 31 to November 7.