it susceptible to the same biases that
plague human cognition [ 4]. Platforms
such as ML Kit, Tensor Flow, scikit-learn, and IBM Watson are available;
however, these platforms are intended
to be used by developers or researchers
who have a foundational knowledge in
programming and an understanding of
AI’s capabilities.
Design’s role is to contribute a
humanist perspective that considers the
social, political, ethical, cultural, and
environmental factors of implementing
AI into daily human-to-computer
interactions. By necessity, interaction
designers must imagine how people
can interact with AI that doesn’t
constrain the human experience but
rather facilitates interactions that allow
for nuance and exchange. Interaction
designers have the opportunity to
use their range of skills to imagine
As artificial intelligence (AI) and
machine learning’s (ML) prominence in
daily human-to-computer interaction
grows, the field of interaction
design must shift to understand the
possibilities, limitations, and biases
of AI. Currently, academia and
technology corporations are leading the
way in research and implementation,
working in distinct fields such as
natural language processing and object
recognition. There has been enormous
progress, as AI, supported by deep
learning [ 1], is very good at completing
a discrete task such as scheduling an
appointment [ 2]. But it’s not capable of
completing a more general intellectual
task, such as knowing how and when to
reschedule the appointment in the event
of more urgent matters. Moreover, ML’s
reliance on data collected from human
annotation and transcription [ 3] makes
AInsights → Speculation is a powerful technique that can enable designers to propose, conceive, and ideate on how AI could work. → Design’s role is to contribute a humanist perspective that considers the social, political, ethical, cultural, and environmental factors of implementing AI into daily human-to-computer interactions. → Data and algorithms are the
materials that affect how
a user experiences AI—its
personality, biases, and
idiosyncrasies.
DE SIGN
AND FICTION:
IMAGINING
CIVIC AI
Jason Shun Wong
SPECIAL TOPIC
