Avatopia - A Techno-Soma1c Explora1on of Bias and Power in AI-Driven Iden1ty forma1on

This PhD project aims to explore the implica1ons of AI-based technological advancements on iden1ty construc1on. To
achieve this, a sensor- and actuator-supported open world game will be created to cri1cally respond (on mul1ple levels)
to the ques1on: how AI-driven avatar design perpetuates biases and stereotypes through the representa1on of bodies
in digital spaces, and how this contributes to maintaining exis1ng power structures? Furthermore we address the issue
of how the increasing autonomy of technology leads to a decline in the autonomy of users, and what socio-technical
systems shape the underlying architecture of those AI-based tools. In order to accomplish this we aim to design the
game as a techno-soma1c healing tool that reinvents the singular body, dissolves norms, and promotes equity. Our
theore1cal research will be reflected in the game design and narra1on, in a cyclical process where academic,
technological and ar1s1c input inform and inspire one another. The project seeks to contribute to the ongoing ar1s1c
and academic discourse on the societal effects of emerging technologies and their impact on individual iden1ty
forma1on.