Short Abstract:

Exploring AI agents in Theatrical Technology Assessment to simulate stakeholder interactions. Utilizing LangChain and AutoGPT, this workshop aims to foster stakeholder engagement and insights into technology's ethical, social, and political dimensions, promoting participatory public discourse.

Long Abstract:

We will explore the use AI agents based on GPT4 in Theatrical Technology Assessment (TTA) methodology, focusing on co-designing the agents with participants to simulate stakeholder interactions. On the technology side, the format leverages on the LangChain framework and draws inspiration from models like AutoGPT to create a sandbox for stakeholders-to-AI agents interactions. The co-design process allows for the exploration of stakeholder negotiations on STS issues, such as AI regulations, through simulations that capture diverse perspectives and outcomes. TTA, embedded within the Constructive Technology Assessment framework, facilitates proactive learning among stakeholders at the nascent stages of technology development, highlighting the importance of stakeholder engagement in steering technology. The workshop will employ an iterative design process for AI agents, balancing the views of technology promoters and critics, and experimenting with how simulated outcomes are presented to the public. This approach is informed by new materialist philosophies (and discussion of post-qualitative research), particularly Karen Barad's agential realism, emphasizing the entangled nature of material and discursive elements in societal outcomes. By simulating technoscientific negotiations, such as those around AI governance, we aim to produce insights into the ethical, social, and political dimensions of technology, fostering a participatory public discourse reminiscent of the 18th century's public demonstrations of science and technology. This workshop sets the stage for a rethinking of public engagement in science and technology, proposing AI-simulated negotiations as a method for integrating societal considerations into science and technology debates and regulation. With this workshop we want to start a discussion about the future of STS research methodologies, advocating for the inclusion of AI agents as a tool for enhancing both scholarly inquiry and public engagement with science and technology. We will reimagine how we conceptualize, study, and engage with the technological transformations shaping our world, such as AI in the present.