2021-07-21 "Trust me, I am not a bot" special event

Update 2: We are at capacity for in-person attendance. Please follow the eventbrite link below to register to join remotely via zoom. Also, if you have registered but cannot make it after all, please change your rsvp and/or contact oskar at skarinn@yahoo.com.

Update: Due to limited capacity at the venue, we have also added an option for you to attend the remotely on zoom. To register a ticket for this option (and receive the zoom link), you will need to visit the event's page on Eventbrite, which can be found here:
https://www.eventbrite.co.uk/e/silicon-brighton-trust-me-im-not-a-bot-tickets-161220608179

How does machine manipulation mess with our relationship to reality?
What the hell happened to the truth?
Can you manufacture authenticity?
Should we be scared of the bots?
Can we believe our eyes anymore?
Will deepfakes destroy the world?

The Brighton data forum and Silicon Brighton are excited to invite you to a very special, in-person get-together at Platf9rm, Hove. Do join us for a unique evening of stimulating discussions on the future of authenticity in a post-truth world.

We are extremely proud and excited to announce that local AI artist Shardcore, also known as Eric Drass, will present at the event his work
"The Truth, Post-Truth, & Nothing Like The Truth"

In it, Eric uncovers how and why our perception of reality is increasingly mediated by machines, going on to explain some of the ways he bends this reality via a graphics processing unit (GPU) and some nifty Python programming.

Eric Drass is an artist and curator who makes work in a range of media, from painting, to digital installation, to machine-learning AI art. Some of his favourite themes are identity, consciousness, the philosophical ramifications of artificial intelligence, big data and the relationship between humans and machines. Sometimes this work is political, frequently it is playful, often it is provocative or transgressive in some way.

Eric once took at dotcom 1.0 company from a bedroom project to 14 countries and back, spending $50M on the way. He is the co-author on a number of patents dealing with PRISM-type surveillance technologies (long before PRISM became public), and a number of academic papers relating to neural network models of language acquisition and heritability. His works are frequently reported on and cited online (The Guardian, BBC4, Wikipedia, and many more).

See his various works, from twitter bots to style transferGANs at his site http://shardcore.org, or follow his sharp commentary on Twitter: @erocdrahs.

We appreciate your punctuality. Refreshments to be served.

The Brighton data forum is a socialising, networking, and skill-sharing community for anyone working with data in the area. We bring local data professionals together to share experiences and exchange war stories, increase awareness of local opportunities, and to give or receive support with data-related challenges.

About Silicon Brighton
Silicon Brighton is a community-led initiative to support digital growth in the region. We work hand-in-hand with the local tech community to provide individuals with free opportunities for networking, training, up-skilling and development; helping people to take their careers and businesses forward. Find out more at https://siliconbrighton.com/.