'Artificial: Remote Intelligence': Release date, background, trailer and all you need to know about the series
One of the most cutting-edge shows on the internet is returning with a remotely produced Season 3. Twitch's 'Artificial' is an interactive series that harnesses audience participation to further the story of an Artificial Intelligence that's trying to learn how to be more human.
Here’s everything you need to know about the project:
Release Date
'Artificial' Season 3 will premiere on May 21 at 6 pm PT/ 9 pm ET.
Where to watch
Each of the 12 two-hour episodes will be available on Twitch.
Background
'Artificial' is an award-winning series that uses real-time audience polls, fan questions, mail, and more to allow users to shape the way the story is told. The first two seasons focused on Artificial Human Sophie Lin (Tiffany Chu) but Season 3, titled 'Artificial: Remote Intelligence', will focus on a brand new AI isolated from human contact to avoid the homicidal tendencies of her predecessor and guided by an idealistic young scientist named Elle (Christy St. John).
Here's how the story begins, according to the official synopsis: "Still licking the wounds suffered from the fall of Sophie Version 2 (“SV2”), who the audience decided should be deactivated, Sebastian (Stephen Chang) and his organization see an opportunity to relaunch a new Artificial Intelligence is using the technology that Dr. Matt Lin (Tohoru Masamune) first used to bring Sophie to life.
After installing a blank slate consciousness into Sophie’s old shell, “SV3” is activated and quarantined to a single home. Not wanting to repeat the same mistake of AI homicide that her predecessor Sophie (SV2) made, Sebastian rules that no humans are allowed to physically interact with SV3. He hires Elle, a cognitive science graduate student, to help raise this isolated SV3 in front of a live Twitch audience."
What's new
This season will be the show's first remotely produced installment, reflecting the work-from-home situation that's rampant in the world right now. World-building will be mixed with plenty of drama to further involve the community in production and storytelling decisions, more than ever before.
Audience members will also have much greater control over the show this season with LifeScore, an AI-augmented adaptive music platform co-founded by composer Philip Sheppard and Tom Gruber, CTO and head of design for Siri, providing the tools for the audience to influence the series’ musical score. Executive producer Bernie Su has also revealed that the audience will even be able to influence casting this season.
The show's audience feedback system has also been improved with a new dynamic polling mechanism that lets the audience know exactly how much time they have left to make important decisions that will shape the show. Plus, audience members will also be able to use worldbuilding episodes to create new characters, settings and more.
Cast
Tiffany Chu
Tiffany Chu is an actor and producer known for her work on 'The Book of Truth' and 'Catch the Fair One'. She played the AI Sophie Lin on the show until her deactivation at the end of Season 2. This time around, the actor will be playing a rebooted "blank slate" AI that uses the same shell as Sophie. Called "SV3" (Sophie Version 3), the audience members will be able to name the new AI and decide how her personality shapes up through real-time polling.
Chu is joined on the cast by Christy St. John who plays a vibrant and idealistic young scientist who will be leading the live-streamed experience and guiding the development of the new AI. She's described as a cognitive science graduate who will be the new AI's sole human contact as she learns to become human and avoid the homicidal tendencies of her predecessor. Stephen Chang will also return as Sebastian.
Creators
Bernie Su, Evan Mandery, and You
'Artificial' is the brainchild of writer/producer Bernie Su and author Evan Mandery. Su, who is an executive producer and founder of 96 Next, which produces the show, is a pioneer of interactive storytelling. His other credits include 'The Lizzie Bennet Diaries' and 'Emma Approved'.
Mandery is an acclaimed author and criminal justice academic. He has written a number of books both fictional and non-fictional including 'Dreaming of Gwen Stefani' and 'Q: A Novel'. He is a co-creator on 'Artificial'.
Of course, the most important people behind the show's production are the audience members who shape the story with their inputs. And this time around, that's more true than ever before.
Trailer
A 60-second trailer for the season titled 'Maybe' has been released online and it showcases the range of possible outcomes that the season could have, ranging from comedy to tragedy to romance to horror. The teaser also mentions the new feature by which audience members can control the music and promises that the robots aren't taking over, the audience is.
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