A two-day tech conference attracted over 500 attendees and gathered tech companies to discuss the ethical use of artificial intelligence (AI) in entertainment, educational service, and creative industries.

Economist Impact hosts the 5^th annual Technology for Change Asia conference from March 12 to 13. International speakers from the US, Norway, and India discuss the norm in utilising AI and question whether there should be regulations for this advanced technology.

Alan Lau from Animoca Brands is based in Hong Kong. Working with 150 gaming companies, he noticed AI is a big part of entertainment. With AI, there will be smarter non-playing characters (NPC) and more personalised interactions. Solo gamers can also play duo games with AI companions. “If they (NPC) know that you're not that good, they actually will tone it down a little bit so you can still enjoy the game,” Alan says. “If you are tired of playing it yourself, sometimes you can pass it on to an AI. They'll continue to play the game for you.”

Portrait of Alan.

Alan (in the middle) shares his thoughts about XR in the conference.

On the production side, vibe coding with AI helps game studios find creative ways to engage with fans and reduce costs. By implementing specific prompts, AI can generate a playful game without experience in coding. For example, a game of chess with players suited up in Pokémon outfits can be made possible.

When asked if humanity is going backward without the need for coding skills or language acquisitions for game development, Alan is more nuanced with his answer. He firmly believes AI is made for humans although there are concerns regarding the slowing down of human intelligence. “We are in the generation where the below average will become average, and people that are good will make better use of it,” he says.

Game developers are aware that safety is not properly addressed in the industry, especially with the problem of game addiction. But to Alan, actively discussing AI ethics and principles is a step forward. “How do you make sure that game developers are thoughtful about game addiction,” he questions. “If games are no longer packaged, it become generative, then what is the output? And how do you make sure the output is still PG-safe?”

Alan believes AI has made more progress than before with the ethics built into the LLM models. He also proposed that if we give AI more time, it will actually be safer, allowing it to filter through more safety requirements in the programme.

Jeanne Lim from beingAI creates AI characters for young people to facilitate better decision-making. However, she is also concerned about the safety of AI applications, especially when children engage with these tools.

Portrait of Jeanne.

“We have to be very thoughtful before we roll out anything to do with kids,” she explains. “The AI being actually has proactivity. So it guides you through a conversation. You're designing that experience and limiting that experience.”

“I would recommend the kids to be very careful and not interact with AI independently before they turn 14 or 15,” she adds.

Unlike ChatGPT where you prompt the AI to respond in a certain way, beingAI launches this safer option which filters out unnecessary conversations. The company has done multiple piloting tests with children but it has not been commercially launched yet.

When asked about regulations, Jeanne believes they have not been caught up with the development of AI. She is aware that a lot of it depends on how we harness personal data. “AI is like fire,” she says. “You warm yourself or you burn somebody. You need wisdom to know how to use the tool.”

From a robotics background of five years, Jeanne first created Sophia the Robot in 2015. By designing it with a human face, she designed it for the people. “We're hardwired to want to communicate, see faces, expressions. We feel better that way,” she says.

As AI and robotics become a norm in resolving arguments and providing conservation solutions, there will be far less fear and more shared experiences. “We might have reached peak expectation,” Jeanne says about the potential of AI. She looks forward to developing her characters with mediums such as holographic projections driven by this technology.

Isabella speaks at the conference.

In the design world, architects have been putting more time into developing AI models for themselves. The Norwegian architecture and design firm, Snøhetta, puts out an original Natural Language Processing (NLP) model which they have trained for the past year. “It takes a long time to build these natural and richer models because they have to learn from people using it. What are they querying about? Are they asking about concepts or pictures,” Isabella Alveberg, CEO of Snøhetta, says.

When asked if there have ever been calculation errors with the model, Isabella is rather gentle towards this emerging technology. “Nothing more than we do as humans either. We are flawed as humans so we make mistakes too. Nothing out of the ordinary," she says.

With increasing competition in the design business, she is aware of the possible risks such as copyright infringement. However, Isabella is 100% for AI. Designers can leverage these tools in optimising project images and briefs. There is just a need to properly harness this technology and be constantly reminded about being human-centric. “If you're going to be living and working and interacting in a building, you actually need humans to design it,” she says.

“We’re very true to our design methodology so that we don't let AI take our work,” she adds.

Coming from an IT and cyber security background of 30 years, Isabella has been passionate about how we can use technology to our advantage. At Snøhetta, moving between the digital and analogue worlds allows her to embrace AI. 

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