Diffusion tv lets people control ai art by tuning a tv antenna
Diffusion TV: Experiencing Diffusion Models through Tangible, Embodied Interaction
Human-Computer InteractionArtificial Intelligence
Summary
Diffusion TV is an art installation that lets people physically adjust a TV antenna to change the clarity of AI-generated images and sounds. This interaction represents the process of how AI diffusion models remove noise to create clear pictures. Participants can switch channels to see animals from the past, present, or imagined future, linking the experience to time and ecology. Instead of explaining the AI technology with words, the creators offer a hands-on way for people to explore and reflect on how AI generates images step by step.
diffusion modelsAI-generated imagesdenoisinginteractive artembodied interactiongenerative AICRT TVexplainable AIaudiovisual feedback
Authors
Sihwa Park
Abstract
Diffusion TV is an interactive AI art installation that offers a tangible and embodied experience of diffusion models through a modified CRT TV. By physically manipulating the TV's antenna, audiences control the clarity of AI-generated images and sounds, metaphorically enacting the denoising process that underlies diffusion-based generation. Using the tuning knob, participants switch between three channels featuring AI-generated animals from the Past (extinct species), Present (endangered species), and Future (speculative creatures), situating the interaction within a temporal and ecological narrative. Through continuous audiovisual feedback and physical interaction, Diffusion TV foregrounds the generative process over final outputs, allowing audiences to explore intermediate states as experiential material. Rather than providing explicit technical explanation, the work presents an alternative, embodied mode of explainable AI that invites exploratory engagement with and reflection on generative technologies.