Cambridge museum visitors to have AI chats with dodo

The technology brings together all the available information on each animal involved, said the museum

J. Garget A skeleton of the extinct flightless bird the dodo in a clear glass case. Jack Ashby, in a blue and white shirt over a blue T-shirt, is standing side-on to the case, smiling towards the dodo and holding up a smartphone. — The technology brings together all the available information on each animal involved, said the museum

Visitors to a natural history museum will be able to have two-way chats with animals on display using generative artificial intelligence (AI).

The University of Cambridge’s Museum of Zoology has chosen 13 specimens for the conversations, including the extinct flightless bird the dodo, narwhal and blue fin whale skeletons, a red panda and a preserved cockroach.

Assistant director Jack Ashby said its purpose was to get people engaged with the natural world, as well as providing insights into what visitors wanted to know about the displays.

Visitors will scan a QR code near the exhibit with their phones to start the conversation with each specimen. The month-long experiment starts on Tuesday.

Mr Ashby said: “We’re curious to see whether this will work and whether chatting to the animals will change people’s attitudes towards them – will the cockroach be better liked, for example, as a result of having its voice heard?”

He described it as “an amazing opportunity for people to test out an emerging technology” in a museum setting, with the exhibits able to communicate in more than 20 languages.

The famous dodo will no longer be extinct – in the virtual world, at least

J. Garget A close-up of the skeleton head and neck of the extinct flightless bird, the dodo. Its skeleton is a mid-brown colour and behind it is the blurred out background of a museum. — The famous dodo will no longer be extinct – in the virtual world, at least

The specimens selected include creatures that are still with us, such as the cockroach

University of Cambridge Cockroach specimens in a clear glass or plastic case, showing the insect at different stages of its development. There is a golden-brown egg case, two different sizes of nymphs and two larger adult specimens. — The specimens selected include creatures that are still with us, such as the cockroach

The initiative is a collaboration with company Nature Perspectives, which uses AI to help institutions like the museum engage the public through conversational experiences.

Co-founder Gal Zanir said visitors would be encouraged to ask any questions that interested them and “the replies are crafted from the animal’s simulated point of view”, drawing on scientific knowledge and the species’ unique traits.

Long-extinct animals, such as the Ichthyostega – an extinct ancestor of all animals with four legs – will be able to communicate

J. Garget A model of an Ichthyostega, which was a crocodile-like low-slung animal. It has a long snub-nosed head, a fleshy body and arms at flipper angles to its torso. It is being looked at by a woman holding a smartphone. — Long-extinct animals, such as the Ichthyostega – an extinct ancestor of all animals with four legs – will be able to communicate

Nature Perspectives, which was created by Cambridge University Masters in Conservation Leadership graduates, said people seemed to feel more connected with machines when they talked to them.

This inspired it to apply the same principal to nature – giving it a voice to “strengthen our connection with the natural world and reverse apathy towards biodiversity loss”, it said.

Mr Zanir said: “To the best of our knowledge, no other museum offers this type of immersive, first-person interaction with natural history entities/specimens”, enabling “direct, first-person dialogues with the animals themselves”.

“We aim to apply this transformative approach widely, from public engagement and education to scientific research, to representing nature in legal processes, policy-making and beyond,” he added.

“One of the most magical aspects of the simulations is… visitors of all ages will be able to ask the specimens anything they like,” said Jack Ashby

J. Garget Jack Ashby standing with his back to the viewer in a blue and white shirt over blue trousers. He holds a smartphone in his hand and is looking at the head end of a large suspended skeleton of a fin whale, which hangs against a backdrop of two-storey glass windows. — “One of the most magical aspects of the simulations is… visitors of all ages will be able to ask the specimens anything they like,” said Jack Ashby

But how will the company ensure the AI responds correctly and without making up replies?

Mr Zanir said the AI was “fine-tuned” on a curated set of scientific data selected by its team of ecology experts.

While the AI will draw on broader available knowledge, it will prioritise the specific knowledge that had been “carefully curated”.

Other specimens participating in the project are brain coral, the red admiral butterfly, huia taxidermy (a recently extinct bird from New Zealand), a freeze-dried platypus, a giant sloth fossil skeleton, a giant deer skull and antlers, a mallard taxidermy and an Ichthyostega model.

In the two-way conversations, which can be voice or text-based, the specimens will answer as if they are still alive

J. Garget A freeze-dried platypus, suspended within a clear-glass museum case. It has brown fur, a bill like a duck and flipper like arms. On the other side of the glass can be seen Jack Ashby. He is smiling towards the platypus. — In the two-way conversations, which can be voice or text-based, the specimens will answer as if they are still alive

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