*Initial conversations and ideas*

The idea for "Conflicts" was originally sparked when my team and I began exploring and developing tools that integrate state-of-the-art AI (my area of expertise as a technican and researcher) and real-time workflows (something I was interested in learning for a long time).

It became clear to me, the more we experimented, that there was huge potential in linking existing, robost 3D avatars to the large language models (LLM's) and communication systems we were already working on. This led us to some essential questions: who would these avatars represent? What should their environment look like? What kind of conversations should they have?

As I pondered these questions, the concept of "Conflicts" started to take shape—a simulation of past relationships played out through battling NPCs. This artwork is incredibly personal - more so than any project I've ever undertaken.

However, beyond my personal reflections, the artwork explores the capacity for AI to realize and personify real world identities in an increasingly tracked and digitized world. It further asks whether simulated agents could ever aid in therapeutic intervention through generative role playing.

Parag K. MITAL, Ph.D. is an internationally exhibited artist and interdisciplinary researcher working between computational arts and machine learning practices for nearly 20 years. His work examines the nature of perception in both humans and computers, often exploring the disjunct between the two, through mediums such as generative film, augmented reality, and large-scale archival interpretations. The balance between his scientific and arts practice allows both to reflect on each other: the science driving the theories, and the artwork re-defining the questions asked within the research.