Cat Royale: An Artistic Inquiry into Trust in Robots

TL;DR

This artwork investigates trust in robots through an interactive installation where a robot arm plays with cats, prompting viewers to consider the implications of trusting autonomous systems in caregiving roles.

Contribution

It presents a novel artistic approach to exploring trust in robots by integrating interactive robot behavior with audience engagement and reflection.

Findings

Audience engagement with the installation provokes trust-related questions.

The artwork demonstrates a creative method to explore societal implications of autonomous systems.

The decision engine's assessment of happiness influences robot behavior, illustrating adaptive trust mechanisms.

Abstract

Cat Royale is an artwork created by the artists Blast Theory to explore the question of whether we should trust robots to care for our loved ones. The artists endeavoured to create a `Cat Utopia', a luxurious environment that was inhabited by a family of three cats for six hours a day for twelve days, at the centre of which a robot arm played with them by wielding toys. Behind the scenes, the decision engine recommended games based on ongoing assessment of their happiness. A video installation featuring an eight-hour movie of the cats' exploits is currently touring worldwide, provoking audiences to engage with the question of trust in autonomous systems.