Humans in the Loop

The King’s Festival of Artificial Intelligence presents a workshop concert of 'Humans in the Loop'. Prepare for a fast, funny, thought-provoking new musical about AI...written and performed by humans.

AI helpers are getting increasingly involved in our day-to-day: a guilty secret for some, a way of life for others. But not many users know much about the hidden human beings steering the technology.

Feverishly written by two flesh-and-bone humans (librettist and lyricist Lucy Bell, and composer and James Joshua Otto), before their jobs are taken by the bots, 'Humans in the Loop' is inspired by a few pressing questions:

What are the long-term ambitions of tech giants? Whose personal info is feeding the machine? Who are the low-paid workers training AI? And what do you get an AI best friend for their birthday?

Let four actor musicians take you on a sonic journey to meet a vivid cast of characters: from space-colonising tech bros chasing the AGI dream, to precariously-employed data labellers, via our own roles freely donating the most intimate training data. We are all humans in the loop.

You do not need any prior knowledge of AI to enjoy this event.

This event will be held in a venue that sells alcohol and food. If you want to make an evening of it, sign up for Magic, Minds, and the Mysteries of AI which is happening after this event from 19.30 to 20.30.

Humans in the Loop is supported by the Department of Informatics, the King's Institute for Artificial Intelligence and King’s Culture. It is presented as part of King’s Festival of Artificial Intelligence and as part of Lost & Found: Stories of sanctuary and belonging, a free programme of arts and ideas at King’s College London, presented by King's Culture and created with artists, researchers, academics and communities from London and beyond.

Speakers and performers

Dr Johanna Walker is a Post Doctoral Research Associate in the Faculty of Natural, Mathematical & Engineering Sciences, King’s College London. She specialises in data-driven innovation, public and private sector co-creation, data ecosystems, data governance and ethics, generative AI and data, and data literacy.

Johanna is joined by playwright Lucy Bell and composer James Joshua Otto.

Johanna, Lucy and James previously worked together on Destination Hallucination - a mini-musical about Generative AI. You can listen to the musical here and listen to an interview about the making of the musical here.

King's Festival of Artificial Intelligence

This event is part of the King’s Festival of Artificial Intelligence. Running from Tuesday 20 May to Saturday 24 May, the free, five-day festival brings together a diverse line-up of experts to consider critical questions about artificial intelligence in the context of healthcare, education, sustainability, policy, and creativity.

If you are interested in this event, you may also want to join us for:

• The Digital Futures of Literature
• Magic, Minds, and the Mysteries of AI
• AI Dreams and Sci-Fi Nightmares (online)

Festival events will take place across several King’s venues, so please check carefully where the event is taking place. Festival event times may be subject to change. Any changes will be communicated to attendees via Eventbrite emails.

Please note, King's events are free, which means we routinely overbook to allow for no-shows and avoid empty seats. Admission is on a first come, first served basis, so please arrive in good time to avoid disappointment. We will not be able to admit those without tickets or latecomers.