Project
SYNTHETIC TRUTHS
HOW WILL ARTIFICIAL INTELLIGENCE IMPACT THE FUTURE OF ELECTIONS?
Synthetive’s forthcoming iteration, The Election Edition, with Muskan Jain , Birgitte Brander Hessellund Nielsen guided by Andrea Bijen and Gijs Gootjes, is a collaborative project of Digital Society School and Sustainable Media Lab, was presented at Mozilla Festival in Amsterdam on June 13, 2024. Synthetive partnered with Sustainable Media Lab for the interactive exhibition fabricated at the Bevrijdingsfestival in The Hague in May’24 and as a workshop later in Amsterdam on 13th June’24. This Election Edition, sponsored by Centre of Expertise Creative Innovation, is an interactive board game focused on AI 🤖 in political campaigns. This session is not just about gameplay but also deep reflection, inviting participants to explore the intersection of digital literacy, AI, and elections. In this 🎟️ workshop, we guide participants through gameplay in small groups, navigating the strategic use of AI within the electoral landscape. By participating, the audience gains a deeper understanding of the tradeoffs and implications of the (ir)responsible use of AI. We aim to spark insightful conversations about ethics and accountability in election campaigns. After gameplay, participants compare results, share insights, and foster collaborative learning and critical thinking about the responsible deployment of AI in elections.
⭐ About 👉 Synthetive is a boardgame for media makers, also the brainchild of a dynamic team of trainees from the Digital Society School at Amsterdam University of Applied Sciences. Hailing from diverse corners of the globe, including Denmark, Ghana, Iran, India, and Nigeria, the team comprises 🇩🇰 Birgitte Brander Hessellund Nielsen, 🇬🇭 Naana Kumah Yaa Gyamea Kumah, 🇮🇷 Mohammad Reza Foroutan 🇮🇳 Muskan Jain, and 🇳🇬 Edmund O. Ukaegbule. Under 👩🏻🏫 Andrea Bijen‘s 🇳🇱 guidance, our collaborative efforts have brought Synthetive to fruition. 🧵 We proudly partnered with VPRO Medialab, Nederlands Instituut voor Beeld en Geluid and NPO, and we are super thankful to Abel Enklaar for his support! 🧗🏼 This project stands as a testament to the power of international cooperation in driving innovation.
WHAT NEW FORMS OF CO-CREATION WILL/SHOULD SYNTHETIC MEDIA SUPPORT?
Considering the omnipresence of media in our lives, we consume and create more content than ever before. Nowadays anyone can edit and publish a TikTok video, produce music on a laptop, or enhance photos with creative filters using a mobile app. This revolution in content creation is powered by one key element – synthetic media, generated with the help of AI algorithms.
These AI-driven technologies have reached a point where they can create text, images, voice, and video content with such fidelity that it is often indistinguishable from reality. Media is no longer just about representing reality; it is now capable of generating and altering it, opening new possibilities for real-time inclusion, adaptation, and manipulation of stories.
This democratisation of media production allows everyone, from hobbyist creators to professionals, to explore and contribute to content creation in innovative ways. But as we embrace synthetic media and AI-assisted content creation, it also brings a responsibility to be transparent about the origins of these ‘unreal’ stories.
This project is a collaboration with VPRO MediaLab, Beeld en Geluid, and NPO Innovatie. VPRO MediaLab, an independent broadcasting corporation based in the Netherlands, is well-known for organizing hackathons, providing a creative platform for exploring the storytelling potential of cutting-edge technologies. NPO, the overarching public broadcaster in the Netherlands, encompasses VPRO within its network. Beeld & Geluid, also known as the Netherlands Institute for Sound & Vision, is a cultural archive and museum situated in Hilversum, Netherlands.
Who are we?
We are STEAM! Our team is a blend of diverse talents, guided by industry experts and facilitated by the Digital Society School. The team consists of professionals with expertise in various areas, including software development, technical IT support, data analysis, research, sustainable design, animation and visual design.
