AI Photobooth

AI Photobooth is like a digital mirror, reflecting how Artificial Intelligence models “see” us.

This project arose as I was experimenting with LLMs as a creative collaborator through some critical making experiments. I was curious how AI “sees” us, and whether this would reveal any biases or limitations of the models.

Most often the models will return an “attractive” likeness, often reduced to some standard stereotypes i.e. male = facial hair. The models are reluctant to make assumptions about gender, race/ethnicity, and age, but can be coaxed with some prompting. This suggests that them model is being limited by concerns of the creators, and not necessarily a limitation of the model itself.

What is most interesting is when the model is unsure or struggles in some way. For example if the caption expresses the inability to determine a person’s race, the image generator will respond with a blank faced person.