Robot artist paints portrait of the Queen
Image credit: Aidan Meller
Ai-Da Robot, an ultra-realistic humanoid robot artist, has painted a picture of Queen Elizabeth to celebrate her Platinum Jubilee.
After seven decades on the throne, Queen Elizabeth might have thought she had seen it all – until a robot offered to paint her portrait.
Ai-Da Robot is an artificial intelligence robot that creates drawings, paintings and sculptures. Through cameras and computer memory, she is able to leverage a variety of unique algorithms to make an artistic representation of abstract images. Then, Ai-Da's robotic arm turns its digital formations into physical drawings and paintings.
The robot's portrait, Algorithmic Queen, was designed to reflect the different aspects of technological change that have taken place during Queen Elizabeth's 70-year reign.
Robot artist reveals portrait of the Queen / Aidan Meller
Image credit: Aidan Meller
Ai-Da has the appearance of a woman and is named after 18th-century mathematician and scientist Ada Lovelace.
She is also able to have a conversation using a specially designed language model. During the unveiling of the painting, she spoke to the press, and thanked Her Majesty for “her dedication” and “the service she gives to so many people”.
“I think she’s an amazing human being, and I wish The Queen a very happy Platinum Jubilee,” Ai-Da said.
In 2021, Ai-Da took part in the first art exhibition hosted in the Egyptian Pyramids.
Although there have been previous attempts at producing art through artificial intelligence, such as the Vincent AI, which can apply stylistic techniques employed by famous artists to basic hand-drawn sketches, Ai-Da is said to be the first ultra-realistic robot capable of drawing people from life using her eye and a pencil in her hand, according to its creators.
Ai-Da robot sitting with its creator / Aidan Meller
Image credit: Aidan Meller
“We are in unprecedented technological times, and so we are pleased we can take a moment to think about all that has changed during the Queen’s life,” Meller said. “We are excited Ai-Da Robot has made history just in time for the Queen’s Jubilee.”
During her 70-year reign, the Queen has embraced the world’s technological transformation. Her televised coronation was key to turning television into a mainstream medium, and she was the first head of state to send an email. These days, it is said she prefers an eco-hybrid car to the State Carriage and is embracing social media and digital art.
Algorithm Queen will be exhibited publicly in London later this year.
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