TREND RESEARCH
BE ANYONE, BE NO ONE - The Rise of Synthetic Identities
My research methods were digital ethnography, interviews with experts and grounded theory. The collection of the phenomena gave life to the theory of my project: synthetic identities. Synthetic identities are personas in cyberspace that are either manipulated or generated by AI. This work assembles 11 categories of synthetic identities. Each of them represents different uses of this technology in its many contrasting uses. From malicious purposes such as fraud and non-consensual pornography, to enormous potential for industries such as film or marketing.
As science and technology often push questions concerning intentionality and, hence, ethics to the side, I believe this way of exposing the use of synthetic media in this way provides a different, more human perspective.
Our digital world is becoming increasingly synthetic. As more and more of the media we consume and create contains AI-generated elements, it is fundamental to create space for discussion and literacy about this topic. Not only focusing on the now but also having in mind how constellations of technologies such as synthetic media and blockchain begin to intertwine. Therefore, I also included in my study a foresight chapter in which I provided insights to possible synthetic futures with autonomous digital humans and cyberimmortals.
If you are interested in the trend study and future collaborations, please write me an email at contact@katherinemazzei.com
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N0-B0D1ES
Researching AI-generated content awakened my perception of how fast technology is developing. All the information I gathered from my studies—research, conversations, debates, questions—all of this nurtured my imagination, like seeds being planted in my head. Then, my studies in design and trend research poured the seeds to flourish speculative stories. And there are plenty of ways to tell stories. However, the written form is the only medium that allows telepathy to take place. Readers are inside the writer’s head, following his or her stream of consciousness. There is no other medium that provides the mind with the space required to decode what is being said. Reading brings forth a meditative state of mind that enables immersive forms of imagination.
That is why I designed and wrote N0-B0D1ES. It contains 4 speculative sci-fi stories placed on different scenarios in which synthetic media develops even further. The book includes abstract illustrations made with the binary code style that aims to give a tech/sci-fi look to the book. After each story, readers find black pages in which I made comments based on hard facts from the now (now as of May 2022). Through facts and resources, the readers travel back to the now.
After the stories comes the chapter Jasper, my AI writing assistant. As AI tools are becoming not only instruments we design for but also instruments we design with, I explored this paradigm shift along with Jasper. I became my own guinea pig, reflecting on how the process of curation and idea generation using AI inputs affected my identity as an author. The aim of using this technology was to explore how this tools (or assistants) are changing the nature of creation and creativity.
In this way, N0-B0D1ES mediates my study in an entertaining yet educational way. One of the lessons I learned during my research is that we need to create more space to speak about technology and create more literacy adapted to different targets, crossing boundaries between culture and disciplines. With N0-B0D1ES, It is my modest aim to stimulate further thinking and ask questions through my writing. We need to imagine first the futures we want to live in.
© 2022 / KATHERINE MAZZEI
Photography: Juliana Schneider