Click Here to Get Candy

An interactive art installation that highlights the potential dangers of artificial intelligence

Platform
Art Installation
Roles
Interaction Designer
Painted concept sketch of the candy dispenser shown from the front, side, and three-quarter angles.

Click Here to Get Candy is an AI-powered candy dispensing system that only gives candy to people an algorithm decides are eligible, maximizing the "utility" of each piece by making sure the right person gets it. The installation is meant to highlight the potential dangers of misused technology, and how an algorithm inherits the values and ideology of whoever built it.

Six-step interaction diagram: press Get Candy, enter a name, pick a number, a visual analyzer scans the participant's face, their collected information is shown, then the machine dispenses or withholds candy.
Interaction diagram.
The installation on a table inside a mesh display booth, with a sign reading Click Here To Get Candy.
The final model shown on display at a showcase. Participants were invited to interact with the artwork.
The finished installation in use.
The interface reading a participant's photo to estimate age, sex, and mood.

This piece was meant to make the dangers of misused technology tangible: how an algorithm inherits the values and ideology of its creator. The project helped me grow as a programmer, experiment with different interaction mediums, and examine different kinds of interactions.