A painting of British computer scientist and codebreaker Alan Turing that was created by an AI - power automaton has get $ 1.08 million at auction .

The astonishing amount marks a record sale for a piece of art created by a android automaton , and is sure to plague discussion about the core AI is make on nontextual matter and how it is produce .

The painting of Turing was created by Ai - Da , an AI - power robotintroduced by Briton Aidan Mellerin 2019 as “ the first ultrarealistic humanoid AI robot creative person . ”

Sotheby ’s , which auctionedAI God : Portrait of Alan Turingon Friday , calculate that it would fetch up to $ 180,000 , but the command rack up , with the anonymous winner handing over more than $ 1 million for the slice .

Ai - Da , nominate after Ada Lovelace , who is wide recognize as the mankind ’s first estimator programmer , comes up with ideas through verbal exchange with her creators , and this time indicate painting an image of Turing during a discussion about “ AI for good , ” fit in to anAgence France - Presse report .

The robot then take the style , color , subject matter , tone , and texture for the picture before process a picture of Turing in preparation for paint the artwork . Using a robotic hand , Ai - Da is only able to paint on a relatively small canvas , and the final image was enlarged using a printer .

Turing made substantial donation to computer scientific discipline , cryptography , and machine learning , most notably via his function in breaking the German Enigma codification during World War II and for formulating the concept of the Turing machine , which lay the groundwork for modern computing and AI .

“ AI Godgoes beyond a unproblematic tribute , reflect on Turing ’s profound question : ‘ Can machines think?’”Sotheby ’s saidon its web site . “ This interrogation is fundamental to Ai - Da ’s being , as she embody Turing ’s vision of machine intelligence capable of simulating human opinion . ”

It key Ai - Da ’s portrayal of Turing as “ a symbolic contemplation on the blurred line between human and machine capability , particularly as she herself is a Cartesian product of AI algorithms that allow her to draw , blusher , and do . ”

Sotheby ’s say that in creating the double , Ai - Da “ honour Turing as a ‘ graven image ’ of AI — a name whose insights made it potential for machines like her to put down domain traditionally appropriate for human creativity . ” It noted , too , that the sale pose Ai - Da ’s artwork among those of famed artist preceding and present , marking a shift key where machines are now part of the creative process . “ Ai - Da ’s fine art , therefore , ask over viewers to study both the promise and potential pitfall of AI — a reflection on how engineering can shape , and even redefine , human agency and creativeness , ” it said . “ Her artwork compels us to face the evolving definition of what it means to create , to think , and to be as AI becomes more integrated into society . ”