38 INTERACTIONS NOVEMBER–DECEMBER2018 INTERACTIONS.ACM.ORG SPECIAL TOPIC

CYBERNETICS
AND THE DESIGN
OF THE USER
E XPERIENCE
OF AI SYSTEMS

Nikolas Martelaro, Stanford University

Wendy Ju, Cornell Tech

economy) systems [ 1]. In addition to reaching goals, AI and cybernetics both consider how systems can learn; however, while AI considers using stored representations as a means of acting intelligently, cybernetics focuses on grounded and situated behaviors that express intelligence and learning based on feedback and interaction [ 2].

Currently, we are seeing a growth in AI systems based on machine-learning techniques that exhibit forms of intelligent behavior by creating representations from large amounts of data. Some examples include computer-vision systems that accurately identify and label objects in images and speech-input systems that can understand natural language. Much of the focus in recent AI has been on training systems to exhibit intelligent behavior, such as image recognition.

Cybernetics and artificial intelligence (AI) are often considered the same thing, with cybernetics having something to do with creating intelligent cyborgs and robots. In actuality, cybernetics and AI are different ways of thinking about intelligent systems or systems that can act toward reaching a goal. AI is primarily concerned with making computers mimic intelligent behavior based on stored representations of the world. Cybernetics more broadly encompasses the study of how systems regulate themselves and take action toward goals based on feedback from the environment. These systems are not just computational; they include biological (maintaining body temperature), mechanical (governing the speed of an engine), social (managing a large workforce), and economic (regulating a national

CInsights → Cybernetics can provide a useful framework for augmenting designers in creating human-centered interactive AI-enabled products. → Designers will no longer explicitly craft the interactions between a product and a user. Instead, we will need to design the meta-systems that design a product’s interactions.