A groundbreaking new report by the British Council reveals how artists worldwide are playing a crucial role in shaping humanity's relationship with rapidly advancing technologies like artificial intelligence, robotics, and quantum computing. The comprehensive study, titled "Why Technology Needs Artists," features insights from 56 leading art and technology pioneers across 20 countries and five continents, including prominent figures like Mat Dryhurst, Sougwen Chung, and Linda Dounia.

The report draws inspiration from the landmark 1968 exhibition "Cybernetic Serendipity" at the Institute of Contemporary Arts, which first brought together composers, artists, filmmakers, engineers, scientists, and academics to explore the intersection of technology and creativity. Ruth Mackenzie, director of arts at the British Council, notes that the exhibition "sparked a dialogue spanning multiple continents about the relationship between technology and the arts" and "pushed at what is possible when computation and creativity are combined."

Today, these concepts of computation and creativity are more intertwined than ever before, thanks to innovations in robotics, AI, quantum computing, and other emerging technologies. The British Council's new research aims to determine whether the ongoing dialogue between art and technology has managed to keep pace with accelerating technological development.

The report showcases diverse perspectives on how artists are engaging with cutting-edge technologies. The LAS Art Foundation reflects on its exploration of quantum technologies with artists like Libby Heaney and Laure Prouvost. Artist Paolo Cirio discusses how artists can "foster social change and intervene directly into the decline of justice and welfare by challenging the uses and perceptions of new technologies." Writer and translator Yásnaya Elena Aguilar Gil advocates for "reclaiming a technological commons, which has been largely privatized under a regime of unbridled capitalism."

While public discussions about technology and art often focus on legal disputes against companies like Midjourney and OpenAI, or open letters opposing AI in the art world, the report argues that these simplistic narratives fail to capture the complex relationship between artists and technology. Many artists highlighted in the study emphasize their ability to influence technological development, not just be influenced by it.

Mat Dryhurst and Holly Herndon exemplify this proactive approach through their experiments with new governance frameworks and protocols, including their 2024 Serpentine exhibition "The Call," which helped establish blueprints for artists and collectives to create valuable work in the AI era. Similarly, Sougwen Chung has pushed the boundaries of robotics as an artistic tool, exploring possibilities beyond human physical limitations.

Linda Dounia has gained international recognition for her generative art work that challenges the biased data and corporate incentives of major technology companies. When asked about the relationship between artists and technologists since 1968, Dounia observed, "It is more possible than ever to be both now, and there have been enough examples of people who are both within my lifetime for me to aspire to be an artist who is also a technologist."

Dryhurst takes this integration even further, stating, "I don't create much of a distinction between artists and technologists. In the 1960s, these divisions were clearer, as they were discrete and rarely interacting fields. Today the two areas are entirely entangled." He emphasizes that understanding technological systems has become essential for cultural intervention: "Unless you understand the technological systems that underpin culture, you will have a very hard time understanding it and intervening in it."

Regarding the balance between pushing technological boundaries and protecting artists' interests, the featured artists offer varied approaches. Dounia explains, "I am not looking to push the boundaries of technology with my practice. I want to understand them: situate myself within the context they create and situate them within my context." This critical engagement helps her maintain agency over the tools she uses.

On the question of ensuring a viable future for human artists, Dounia advocates for global collaboration: "Imagining and building a future for human labor that includes more and more intelligent technology is the concern of everyone. The only way we approach the multi-dimensional challenge of intelligent technology is with multi-lateral collaboration, at a global scale."

Dryhurst maintains optimism about artists' continued relevance, arguing that "artists will exist in any scenario, as an artist is someone who creates distinction in their era through making things." However, he calls for institutional responsibility in education, noting that "our educational institutions were not preparing students for the internet economy. It is even more clearly untenable now."

When discussing technology's potential to empower artists in imagining a hopeful future, Chung emphasizes art's inherent optimism: "There is an implicit hope at the center of every creative act – art practice is not simply expression but a practice of invention, resilience, and community." Through her work with emerging technologies, she creates "processes as technical microcosms" and shares them publicly to invite community discussion about technology's role in art and culture.

The artists also highlight art's unique power to influence technological development. Dounia notes that artists "can materialize futures at smaller, workable scales" and "aren't constrained by discipline or dogma – they can travel between domains and connect ideas that wouldn't ordinarily cross paths." These abilities become particularly valuable during times of uncertainty when traditional frameworks no longer suffice.

Dryhurst and Herndon have developed what they call "protocol art," creating applications and protocols that have influenced both state and company policies. "Once you accept that technological protocols are perhaps the most culturally-consequential medium to work in, it makes sense to experiment there," Dryhurst explains.

Despite the challenges and complexities involved, the featured artists maintain a nuanced but ultimately hopeful outlook. Dounia describes her perspective as "conflicted," acknowledging both technology's failures and its benefits: "We make it, so it's only fair that it is in our image: messy, problematic, but also not immutable. Technology, like humanity, is a space of possibility."

The British Council report concludes that "artists are central to the reimagining and reengineering of technologies" and that "it is through the long-term investment in artistic practice, and the people and organizations that sustain it, that true imaginative leaps with technologies take place." As technological advancement continues to accelerate, the study suggests that artists will remain essential guides for navigating the complex relationship between human creativity and machine capability.