Created as an internal simulator for “Interface Prototype for Different Natures,” exhibited in “Surprisingly Heartful,” the third installment of the 8th KUMA EXPERIMENT, a group exhibition by KUMA Foundation grantees. Based on an artificial ecosystem simulator that uses GPGPU technology to calculate the real-time interactions of large numbers of artificial life forms, it was designed to create a space in which artificial life living in computational space and humans (viewers) living in physical space could interact on equal terms. To that end, I built a system using hardware and sensors that enabled both sides to interact spontaneously with one another. From the perspective of the video work itself, I also incorporated expressions such as the surface of a liquid, exploring ways to make the boundary feel less apparent when exhibited on a touch display.

Exhibited at NTT ICC Kids Program “Kimi ( ). Code ( ). Sekai ( ).” This program was an event for children during summer vacation, and this work was also created with elementary school children and younger viewers in mind. Using bubbles, a “boundary” commonly found in nature, as its motif, the work creates a simulation that expresses an ecosystem composed of multilayered enclosed regions. This simulator runs in real time using GPGPU technology, enabling interaction with viewers. Sensors installed at the floor level detect the movements of children, allowing interaction between the artificial ecosystem and the children. In addition, a new projection sheet was installed for this work, and by instructing viewers to step onto it barefoot, the experience was designed so that they could engage with the artificial ecosystem on a life-size scale while feeling the raw texture through the soles of their feet.

Exhibited at PARCO P.O.N.D. 2022. A swarm of artificial lifeforms, each with distinct genes and intelligence, formed groups for their own survival and the preservation of their genes, preying on other species and reproducing through mating; this behavior was simulated in real time using GPGPU technology. The activities of each lifeform produce changes only in their immediate vicinity, but those effects spread through a network of interactions, forming a diverse ecosystem. This work was exhibited on a human-height touch display on the fifth floor of Shibuya PARCO, enabling life-size interaction. The touch display was installed midway along a route traveled by people with a wide range of attributes as they moved through the shops, creating unpredictable encounters between the ecosystem and viewers, while also becoming a place for unexpected communication among viewers mediated by the work. As part of “Katawara,” a project to make artificial life exist alongside everyday life, the simulator was run continuously for more than a week in 2024, and the process was streamed on YouTube Live.