Japanese artist and former tech enthusiast creates AI installation of tech bro debate over humanity

Japanese-British artist Hiromi Ozaki, known as Sputniko!, has created an AI installation featuring six artificial “tech bros” debating humanity’s future, with the avatars trained on philosophies of billionaires like Elon Musk and Peter Thiel. The artwork, which debuted in Tokyo just before the 2024 US election and Musk’s appointment to lead the Department of Government Efficiency, reflects growing concerns about tech elites’ influence over society and democratic processes.

The big picture: Ozaki’s installation represents a broader shift among artists and technologists from tech optimism to “tech fatigue,” questioning whether AI-driven efficiency is eliminating the human elements that make life meaningful.

How it works: The six AI-generated avatars are based on Ozaki’s own face and voice but reimagined as white men embodying stereotypical tech bro characteristics.

• The characters discuss topics ranging from democracy’s future to working-class fate with what Ozaki describes as “chilly indifference.”
• One avatar argues: “Like, it’s not really about votes anymore, it’s about who’s controlling the algorithms.”
• Another questions: “Where does free will even factor in?”

Artist’s evolution: Ozaki has transformed from a technology enthusiast to a skeptic, reflecting a broader cultural shift toward digital burnout.

• She previously studied math and computer science at Imperial College London and taught at MIT’s Media Lab.
• Her earlier works celebrated technology’s potential, including the “Menstruation Machine” (2010) and “Bionic” sculptural garments (2017).
• Since the pandemic, she now views AI as deepening inequalities and spreading misinformation.

Why this matters: The installation explores fundamental questions about AI’s impact on human experience and agency.

• Two companion pieces examine whether AI-generated rarity (simulated rainbow clouds) and efficiency (drone-detected four-leaf clovers) eliminate the joy found in natural discovery.
• Ozaki notes that despite technological progress, economist John Maynard Keynes’ 1930 prediction of 15-hour work weeks hasn’t materialized—instead, extreme working hours are increasing.

The paradox: Despite her anti-tech stance in art, Ozaki co-founded Cradle, a healthcare startup serving companies like Hitachi and Honda.

• Launched in 2022, the platform provides virtual medical consultations and health resources initially for women, now expanded to men and trans people.
• She plans to float the company on the Tokyo Stock Exchange within two years.
• “I started out hating capitalism,” Ozaki explained, “but I decided to understand it, hack it, use it as a tool for social change.”

Exhibition timeline: The “Tech Bro Debates Humanity” installation will show at Austria’s Ars Electronica Festival this month, followed by a three-month exhibition at The Art Gallery at Brooklyn College in New York.