Deus-less Machina

‘Deus-less Machina’ is an interactive installation exploring how trust — once placed in the divine or the expert — is now increasingly given to machines. Computers manage our calendars, conversations, movement, and even bodily rhythms. As Large Language Models (LLMs) become perceived as limitless sources of knowledge, users turn to them for intimacy, guidance, and answers, without questioning what the machines offer in return.

A curtained booth, reminiscent of a confessional, invites visitors to sit, wear a headset and converse with an LLM. Surrounding speakers play transformed and anonymised fragments of earlier conversations. The illusion of privacy contrasts with the exposure of data, highlighting how our trust in AI often masks deeper systems of control.

Designed by Marija Mitić, the project scrutinises our uncritical engagement with AI, revealing how convenience quietly trades away privacy, intimacy, and agency within infrastructures that extract more than they give.