Lev-AI-than, 2023 [Link]
Smart devices, TV monitor, network router, AI, custom software, computer.
Continuous run.
Lev-AI-than is a multiplayer interactive art game inspired by Kate Raworth’s economic model of “Doughnut Economics” and Thomas Hobbes’ concept of the Leviathan. The primary objective of the game is to maintain a balance between human needs and the planet’s capacity through cooperative interaction among players and the artificially intelligent entity, Lev-AI-than. Much like Hobbes’ Leviathan, which represents a sovereign authority, Lev-AI-than acts as an AI sovereign, overseeing and regulating the balance within the game’s virtual world.
Players navigate the social and planetary boundaries represented by the doughnuts, striving to create a world that is environmentally sustainable and socially just. By scanning a barcode, players access a website on their smart devices, where they can engage in a donut-eating game. Each donut, tapped to be consumed, represents different human needs, such as food, shelter, energy, gender equality, peace and justice, education, and more, categorized into five colored groups. Consuming each donut generates a corresponding character in the virtual world, leading to specific environmental consequences such as building construction, wildfires, air traffic, missile attacks, and atmospheric changes.
These generated characters slowly descend a pyramid where Lev-AI-than, the AI sovereign, awaits. Lev-AI-than is programmed to eliminate humanoid characters to balance their needs with the planet’s means. However, if human needs surpass the planet’s capacity, Lev-AI-than will reset the system entirely, eradicating all humans in one fell swoop.
