Ai‑Da, the world’s first ultra‑realistic robot artist, unveiled an oil portrait of King Charles III at the UN’s AI for Good Summit in Geneva.
Titled Algorithm King, the piece shows the monarch alongside Ai‑Da’s 2022 painting of the late Queen Elizabeth II, Algorithm Queen.
Wait… but… how?
The portrait was made using AI algorithms, with Ai-Da’s camera eyes capturing the subject and her robotic arm layering the paint step by step.
Ai‑Da often uses computer vision and image layering. This time, she aimed to reflect the changing role of royal leaders through machine‑made art.
She scanned the image first, and her robot is guided by an algorithm. At the summit, Ai‑Da stated that the portrait is more than a painting.
It’s a “statement about the evolving role of AI in our society,” and how AI is reshaping culture.
Ai-Da’s other fortes
Beyond painting, Ai-Da has produced sketches, sculptures, and digital art. She’s even designed household objects.
The designs, which appear hauntingly flawed, are 3D-printed.
In 2023, her homeware collection – consisting of plates, bowls, jugs, cups, teapots, vases, and cutlery – appeared in the London Design Biennale ‘AI Mind Home’ exhibition at Somerset House.
Aidan Meller, the British gallerist behind Ai‑Da, said the robot chose King Charles III due to his thoughtful leadership and his focus on arts and sustainability.
He said the portrait seeks to explore that tension between tradition and modernity.
This follows Ai‑Da’s previous royal work: in 2022 she painted Queen Elizabeth II to mark her Platinum Jubilee.
Her creators explain Ai-Da is “a partial interpretation of Donna Haraway’s Cyborg, and a reply to Yuval Harari’s request for a cross-disciplinary involvement in responding to the AI and biotechnology revolutions.”
Ai-Da’s fame
Ai‑Da’s track record is already historic.
She’s given a Ted Talk. In November 2024, one of her paintings sold at Sotheby’s for over one million dollars.
She’s also appeared at institutions like Tate Modern and even testified to the House of Lords.
As per her official CV, she is named after Ada Lovelace, the first computer programmer.
Artist residency include the Glastonbury Festival, where she painted Billie Eilish, Kendrik Lamar, Diana Ross, and Sir Paul McCartney; as well as the Porthmeor Studios.
Ai-Da is the concept of Aidan Meller and Lucy Seal, and built by Engineered Arts. Her robotic drawing arm is designed and programmed by Salah El Abd and Ziad Abass.
Her international team of highly skilled and wide ranging contributors and studio technicians are called the ‘Oxfordians’.
